As a psychologist, I've found this case deeply disturbing from the outset and have been attempting to find more information about the alleged mental health problems and treatment of Dr. Ivins. There appears to be minimal substantive data. I was particularly concerned about the credentials of the alleged therapist, how she came to be involved with Dr. Ivins, and what prompted her to seek a restraining (peace) order. Appreciated the link to her testimony which did nothing to alleviate my fears -- in fact, exacerbated them.

We still know nothing about her qualifications. Sometimes referred to as a "social worker" or "therapist," can find no indication of what kind of degree/training she has and it does not appear in the request for restraining order nor is she asked about it in the testimony. She offers off-the-cuff diagnoses supposedly given by psychiatrists, basically that Dr. Ivins was a homicidal psychopath. This is not consistent with the record of a 62 year old high-functioning scientist, with what should have been high security clearance, who apparently worked for the government for 30+ years and was active in his church and community. She says that as early as seven years ago he was threatening to poison people although there is no indication that she has known him more than 6 months or why the government would have allowed him to continue work with pathogens if this were the case. Was this simply hearsay?

Given his recent distress, and alleged threats to kill co-workers, there is no justification for putting him into group treatment or allowing him to discuss details of homicidal or suicidal plans with other patients in a group as she suggests happened. I have serious questions about how he got to this person. Did he seek her out or, more likely, was this an EAP referral from his employer (i.e., the government). Her "working with the FBI" is also suspicious. Client communications are, or should be, privileged and not shared without the clients knowledge and consent unless records have been subpoenaed. It sounds as though this therapist was working for the government rather than the client. If his rights and his dignity were as abused as they appear to be, he had every right to be furious with her.

Ondelette, I disagree with you about the autopsy. Given the circumstances of his death, this should have been a coroner's case and there was every reason for the coroner and the family to ask for a full autopsy. Picking and choosing what tests to run is bad medicine in these cases and families are usually quite willing to consent since they want full information (unless they haven't been given the option). This man apparently was treated by a psychiatrist as well and it's not a stretch to imagine he might have had psychotropic drugs on board. While some have low lethality, others, e.g., anxiolytics and some antidepressants, are quite lethal in overdose.

Glenn -- If you plan to pursue this case and I can help in any way with the mental health issues, please feel free to contact me. Rush Holt has asked FBI's Mueller to appear before the House Committee on Appropriations’ Select Intelligence Oversight Panel-- which might be a start although I can't say that I've been impressed with Congress' ability to hold anyone accountable.

I've long been convinced that neoconservative elements were involved with the planning and execution of the 9/11 attacks, the anthrax scare, the Patriot Act, warrantless wiretapping (see http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/14/business/14qwest.html) and a thousand other nefarious plots to aid them in dominating the American government and its resources. with those kind of plans, why wouldn't you rig elections? Given that position, Glenn's article served to deepen that belief with regard to the oft-forgotten anthrax scare. As you note, the scare occurred just as the public psyche was attempting to come to terms with the 9/11 attacks. The scare operated to elongate the public's panic and invigorate its need to feel secure. Much like 9/11, the scare was never solved (unless you consider the coerced confession of KSM that served as the backbone for the 9/11 report's conclusions) and the scare's perpetrator, like bin Laden, was never ferreted out.

Despite all of this, in my many years of sharing these thoughts with others, the seminal question I always return to is: would you really want to know if neoconservative elements in this country were responsible for effectuating the 9/11 attacks and the subsequent global war on terror? This sentiment was well presented in the movie "V" in the scene where the policeman, who has discovered that the British government was behind an attack on its own people, asks his unwitting partner, "would you really want to know if you own government had betrayed you?"

It's an interesting exercise to ask yourself the same question with regard to the anthrax scare. If Locy, Stewart, Kristof or Ross were forced to reveal their sources and those sources (if they didn't commit "suicide" themselves) confirmed that the scare was an internal operation, then what? Would putting the responsible elements on trial for treason repair the wounds of the last eight years? Lower gas prices? Lead to a withdrawal from Iraq? What if every notion this country has been operating on for the last eight years turned out to be a scheme concocted by neoconservative elements to dominate the very populace they pretend to protect? Would you want to know?

Given his recent distress, and alleged threats to kill co-workers, there is no justification for putting him into group treatment or allowing him to discuss details of homicidal or suicidal plans with other patients in a group as she suggests happened.

The impression I got was that the threats were originally made in a group session and that was the last session Duley had with him, either individually or group.

Did he seek her out or, more likely, was this an EAP referral from his employer (i.e., the government).

This is a very big open question and needs to be answered.

If his rights and his dignity were as abused as they appear to be, he had every right to be furious with her.

If Duley's statements about very specific threats against coworkers and her personally are true then I am going to have to disagree here. I mean come on, making threatening phone calls from a facility where you have been forcibly committed for making threatening statements doesn't help your case much and in no way should be considered logical or proper behavior.

This man apparently was treated by a psychiatrist as well and it's not a stretch to imagine he might have had psychotropic drugs on board.

What drugs he was being treated for and/or what drugs were prescribed for treatment is another very important question.