the killer at thurston high
'Warning Signs?'

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In January of 2000, Oregon Public Television (OPB) produced "Warning Signs," a half-hour panel discussion with experts on youth violence which aired after FRONTLINE's "The Killer at Thurston High." The program was intended to identify the "symptoms of kids who may be heading for a life of violence. . . and what we can do to help [them] before it's too late." Moderated by OPB's Steve Amen, these two five-minute clips feature two panelists: Dr. William Sack, a child psychiatrist and emeritus professor; and Dr. Orin Bolstad, a psychiatrist at MacLaren Hospital in Oregon who leads a pioneering program in violent youth offender therapy. Both Dr Sack and Dr. Bolstad interviewed Kinkel extensively after his arrest and provided testimony as defense witnesses at Kinkel's sentencing hearing.

I. Expert Opinions

In this clip, Dr. Bolstand and Dr. Sack summarize some of their findings on Kip Kinkel from some thirty or forty hours of psychological evaluation. Dr. Bolstad offers his view that Kip suffers from a "seriously disturbed mental condition" that may well be paranoid szichophrenia. Dr. Sack argues that it is hard to understand Kip Kinkel without "understanding the voices that were plaguing him."

II. WARNING SIGNS?

In this clip, moderator Steve Amen presses the panelists for "warning signs" to help identify potentially violent actors. Both Dr. Sack and Dr. Bolstad first express skepticism about the possibility of predicting violence, but, then, each names important behaviors and patterns that concern them that might lead to violence in certain combinations and contexts.


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