During the latest session of the Samuel Luiz case at the Provincial Court in A Coruña, psychologists and psychiatrists who evaluated his parents outlined the deep emotional and psychological consequences triggered by the crime. The father was deemed unfit for work after developing a depressive episode that impaired his concentration, according to his treating psychiatrist. The expert also noted that the man avoided performing tasks at work because he felt phobia and aversion about having to work alongside a relative of one of the accused, and he feared how that person might react given what the clinician described as contained anger. [Citation: Instituto de Medicina Legal de Galicia]
Samuel’s mother presented an even heavier burden of suffering. She was diagnosed with a mood disorder characterized as severe depression. She attributes the traumatic events to a perceived divine punishment. Despite receiving medical care from specialists, she has refused pharmacological treatment or psychotherapy. “That suggests a deeper traumatization”, one of the psychiatrists remarked. The father also had to assume responsibility for his wife, as she required supervision and could not manage daily life independently. [Citation: Instituto de Medicina Legal de Galicia]
A physician who evaluated the couple’s sequelae reported that their social life has been gravely affected. The expert recalled that the woman spent most of her days at home. At present, the parents leave the house only for a short morning and evening walk, and they remain clearly affected by what happened. [Citation: Instituto de Medicina Legal de Galicia]
After the crime, the couple remained in a state of shock, according to a psychologist. “It was a major emotional impact and they struggled to sleep. When sleep came, nightmares were frequent”, the expert noted. The situation was intensified by the fact that the case has been highly mediated, which has exacerbated their mental health difficulties. [Citation: Instituto de Medicina Legal de Galicia]
Another psychiatrist explained that the couple’s mental health problems began with the death of their son. The tragedy is worsened by the violent nature of his passing and by the inability to see him alive in the hospital. “It is a situation of breakdown and loss of control. They stop sleeping and stop eating”, the clinician said. [Citation: Instituto de Medicina Legal de Galicia]
Officials from the Institute of Legal Medicine of Galicia who interviewed the parents after the incident reaffirmed that they had no prior mental illness, and that the current conditions were produced by what happened. They added that the mother’s behavior is typical in such cases: “There is no urge to be with him.” At present, the mother remains untreated, while the father continues to receive psychological and pharmacological treatment. [Citation: Instituto de Medicina Legal de Galicia]