FT. MEADE, Md. (CN) - Repeating a diagnosis made famous by the 1995 film "Clueless," a forensic psychiatrist testifying in defense of Pfc. Bradley Manning on Wednesday emphasized that the WikiLeaks source was in a "post-adolescent idealistic phase."
The phrase is unrecognized in clinical psychiatry.
"It's a period of time when people are more focused on, become focused on making a difference in the world, societal changes, things like that," Navy Capt. David Moulton testified. "That transition period [where] you still are holding on to some of that idealism from youth, and you get exposed, as you become an adult, to things in society and you think you can make a difference."
This "drives a lot of activism on college campuses, and the riots that eventually throughout history happened on campuses," Moulton added. "[It] leads a lot of people to the Peace Corps and all sorts of various things like that. It's a normal stage of human development."
Turning to this case, the doctor surmised: "Pfc. Manning was under the impression that his leaked information was really going to change how the world views the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and future wars actually."
This thinking was unavoidable in Manning's "post-adolescent ... little world," Moulton said.
Columbia University professor Paul Appelbaum said in an interview, however, that this theorized psychological phase "is not a generally accepted clinical term in psychiatry."
"Many young people are idealistic, but so are many older people," added Appelbaum, referred to Courthouse News by the American Psychiatric Association.
Tagging a "pseudo-diagnostic" string of polysyllables on a defendant's behavior is a common practice in court proceedings, he said.
"The assumption is that if a label can be placed upon a person and linked to their behavior, that will help to excuse their behavior," Appelbaum said. "It has an exculpatory impact."
On the witness stand, Moulton said that he did not diagnose Manning with any "personality disorder," but several "personality traits," including narcissism, borderline behavior, a mild form of Asperger's and symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome.
Both of Manning's parents were alcoholics, said Moulton, whom prosecutors will cross-examine this afternoon.
Like many other witnesses, Moulton confirmed that Manning has gender dysphoria, meaning a discomfort with the gender he was assigned at birth. He failed to add that not all transgender people meet the criteria for this diagnosis.
Many transgender advocates have raised concerns about this line of defense, which they fear can set back advancements toward depathologizing gender identity issues.
Appelbaum, the Columbia professor, told Courthouse News that this defense could be legitimate in describing Manning's isolation in the military.
Still, he said that it would not be valid to use the diagnosis in and of itself as a mitigating factor in any criminal case.
An earlier witness Wednesday described Manning's seeming relief when divulging his exploration of a female identity, shortly before the world discovered the young soldier had also been disclosing secrets to WikiLeaks.
"If you share any secret, it's shared, it's no longer a secret," said Capt. Michael Worsley, who treated Manning in Iraq for six months. "You shine light on it, and it's done. It's out there, and I think that it was a big relief to share something like that."
Worlsey was describing the female identity of Breanna that Manning privately explored in the Army during the time of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
