After a prosecution rebuttal to the defense insanity plea, both sides in the murder trial of abortion clinic gunman John Salvi rested Wednesday. Prosecution witness Dr. Joel Haycock testified that Salvi was capable of faking mental illness to avoid a mandatory life sentence if convicted. Chief of forensic services at Bridgewater State Hospital, Haycock indicated that Salvi is more intelligent than tests have suggested and added, “Mr. Salvi is quite capable of putting people on.” Any symptoms of mental illness Salvi suffers do not add up to paranoid schizophrenia, Haycock said.
Jurors had Thursday off before closing arguments start Friday; they will be sequestered until they reach a verdict.
