By Joe Dolinsky
The Times-Leader
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — A psychiatrist who treated a teen accused of blindsiding a man with a brick before crashing a stolen ambulance last year testified Tuesday in Luzerne County Court that the girl said she heard the voices of “angels and demons” in her head shortly after the alleged attack.
Moosic-based psychiatrist Dr. Matthew Berger testified that Destiny Noella McNeil, 18, suffers from auditory and visual hallucinations that led her to believe she saw “demon shadows,” factors that led him to diagnose her with schizophrenia.
The teen’s defense lawyers, public defenders John Donovan and Cheryl A. Sobeski-Reedy, had previously filed a motion that sought to transfer her charges to juvenile court, where she could receive treatment and rehabilitation they say she couldn’t get in the adult system, they wrote in court documents.
McNeil, of Nanticoke, faces a litany of charges that include aggravated assault and theft after she allegedly struck a Nanticoke man in the head with the brick, then fled from East State Street and onto Interstate 81 in the stolen ambulance in September. Police say McNeil, who was 17 at the time, crashed the vehicle near Laurel Run.
Berger, during a hearing to determine whether the charges should be transferred, said McNeil’s condition has improved since he treated her shortly after the alleged incident. The “voices” in her head have subdued, though “mild paranoid thoughts” remain, he said.
McNeil, who grinned and waved to members of her family outside the courtroom before the hearing, did not address the court Tuesday morning.
Berger said McNeil’s actions, specifically her alleged brick attack, didn’t serve a secondary purpose, such as robbery. He suggested McNeil be placed in inpatient psychiatric care that progressed over time to an outpatient program, depending on her response.
“Given a perfect world, she would be in (placed) a residential treatment facility that treats schizophrenia. She would also be involved in individual counseling and group therapy,” he said.
Assistant District Attorney Mamie Phillips, who noted Berger treated McNeil before being retained as an expert witness for the defense, asked whether Berger’s opinions were of someone who had treated the teen or someone who reviewed the records and provided an independent review.
Berger said he wasn’t retained by defense counsel at the time he treated McNeil. He was unsure if he ever testified at a hearing in which he didn’t recommend treatment, he said.
Testimony is expected to continue Tuesday afternoon with another defense expert, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Richard Fischbein and members of McNeil’s family. Prosecutors are expected to call forensic psychiatrist Dr. Steven Samuel.
Luzerne County Judge Tina Polachek Gartley is presiding over the hearing and is expected to issue a ruling at a later date.
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©2016 The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.)