Murder Zoloft* 16/04/1993 Florida Young Man Beats Elderly Woman Summary:

Paragraph 8 reads: "Appel called Zoloft the straw that pushed Brancaccio over the edge. She noted that once he was put on Zoloft, he became nervous, rude, hyper-verbal and quick to anger. According to hospital records, Brancaccio knew something was wrong and begged to stay at the hospital." 

Paragraphs 2 & 3 read: "Appel said the combination of brain damage, mental illness, alcohol and Zoloft pushed Brancaccio over the edge and made it impossible for him to distinguish the difference between right and wrong or to appreciate consequences of his actions when he beat Mollie Frazier."

"Prosecutors say Brancaccio beat Frazier to death in 1993 after she allegedly asked him to stop rapping vulgar lyrics on the street. Brancaccio, who had been released from a mental institution shortly before his encounter with Frazier, claims that he was involuntarily intoxicated on his prescribed medication, Zoloft, had prior organic brain damage, and was not responsible for his actions."

http://www.courttv.com/archive/trials/zoloft/011499.html


Florida v. Victor Brancaccio

Forensic neuropsychologist says Brancaccio was involuntarily intoxicated by Zoloft during killing

Updated January 15, 1999
11:00 a.m. ET

VERO BEACH, Fla. (Court TV) ? Forensic neuropsychologist Antoinette Appel, who has spent the last thirty years of her career studying brains, testified Thursday that Brancaccio was criminally insane at the time of the killing.

Appel said the combination of brain damage, mental illness, alcohol and Zoloft pushed Brancaccio over the edge and made it impossible for him to distinguish the difference between right and wrong or to appreciate consequences of his actions when he beat Mollie Frazier.

Prosecutors say Brancaccio beat Frazier to death in 1993 after she allegedly asked him to stop rapping vulgar lyrics on the street. Brancaccio, who had been released from a mental institution shortly before his encounter with Frazier, claims that he was involuntarily intoxicated on his prescribed medication, Zoloft, had prior organic brain damage, and was not responsible for his actions.

In 1995, Brancaccio was tried and convicted for the murder. However, a Florida appeals court overturned the conviction in 1997, ruling that the trial judge had improperly instructed the jury on the defendant's involuntary intoxication defense.

Defense attorney Roy Black guided Appel through the chronology of Brancaccio's life traumas. Appel discussed Brancaccio's premature birth and near drowning that resulted in permanent brain damage. She testified about how he struggled through school and ranked only in the 4% percentile of all seventh graders.

Appel stated that Brancaccio began to exhibit behavioral problems in high school with truancy, tardiness and fights. All these things, she attributed to his frustration with his mental state.

Brancaccio began drinking at age 13 and became drunk for the first time at 15. By the time he was involuntarily hospitalized at New Horizons, he felt hopeless, suicidal and had a drinking problem, she said.

Appel called Zoloft the straw that pushed Brancaccio over the edge. She noted that once he was put on Zoloft, he became nervous, rude, hyper-verbal and quick to anger. According to hospital records, Brancaccio knew something was wrong and begged to stay at the hospital.

Appel then used her glasses and a Styrofoam cup to demonstrate how Zoloft affects nerve endings by inhibiting the absorption of serotonin into the nerve ending, thereby increasing the level of serotonin in the system.

While noting that Zoloft is helpful for many clinically depressed people, Appel stated that it had a dangerous reaction in Brancaccio's system because of his pre-existing brain damage and because of his mental illness. She said he became obnoxious and out of control. Appel also stated that someone with Brancaccio's mental condition is highly suggestible.

But prosecutor Lynn Park pointed out examples where Brancaccio performed at age level. In one test taken in the third grade he scored in the 43rd percentile; in another in the 86th percentile. Park also attempted to establish that Brancaccio's poor academic performance was not only the result of moderate brain damage, but also the result of a hearing impairment and a lack of effort.

During cross examination, Park also confronted Appel with statements Brancaccio made to his doctor at Savanna hospital, prior to being put on Zoloft. Brancaccio had told his doctor that when he drank alcohol, he became violent, she said.

Park also addressed Brancaccio's mental state prior to being prescribed Zoloft. Appel stated that although Brancaccio was mentally ill and brain damaged prior to taking the drug, he was not criminally insane.

Appel reiterated that Zoloft was the straw that pushed Brancaccio over the brink into criminal insanity. She stated that she believes he is currently criminally insane because he is still recovering from the effects and side effects of Zoloft.

At the end of cross examination, Park dramatically held up the plastic gun and demanded to know from Appel if she really believed Brancaccio did not know right from wrong when he pointed the gun at Mollie Frazier.

After Appel's testimony, Brancaccio's cousin, Patricia Bender, testified that in 1979 she rescued Brancaccio from a pond. She said that when she pulled him out of the water he was blue and lifeless and estimated that he was not breathing for at least five minutes. She said her mother, Pia DiDonna, attempted CPR until the ambulance arrived.

DiDonna testified that when Brancaccio returned from Savanna Hospital, she noticed that he was restless and angry all the time. On cross-examination, however, she admitted that she did not know that Brancaccio had been violent in the past.

Reported by Court TV's Sharon Beaulaurier.