Psychiatrist was unaware of Castillo's Columbine visit
A psychiatrist who treated an Orange County man accused of killing his father and opening fire on his former high school three years ago testified Monday that she was unaware that he visited the site of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting massacre.
Posted — UpdatedAlvaro Castillo, 22, is charged with fatally shooting his father, Rafael Huezo Castillo, on Aug. 30, 2006, and then driving to Orange High School with a cache of weapons and opening fire. Two students were injured in the school shooting, which ended when school personnel tackled the gunman.
Castillo has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
Castillo said in homemade videos prior to the shootings that he was obsessed with the Columbine shootings.
Four months prior to the shootings, Castillo attempted to kill himself. He was subsequently treated at a psychiatric hospital. After his release, he began to stockpile weapons and took a trip a trip to Colorado to the Columbine site.
Psychiatrist Karen Graham said if she had known about the visit, she would have been concerned because it showed “that he was thinking a lot about it."
Graham treated Castillo in the months prior to the shootings. She also said she was unaware that he was obtaining weapons.
Graham was called by the prosecution as a rebuttal witness in the trial, which began Aug. 3.
Testimony will continue on Tuesday.
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