Evening star., 1954-04-28
Emotional Instability
As POW Offered in
Dickenson's S Defense
BY John A. Giles

Defense counsel for Corpl. Ed
ward S. Dickinson today raised
the question Of his sanity at the
time he is alleged to have col
laborated with his Chinese Com
muniSt war captors in Korea.
DR.. Morris Kleinerman, psy-
chiatrist. of 2025 I street N. w.,
told an Army court-martial that
the 23-year-old Virginia noun
taineer was emotionally unstable
at the time and was not respon-
sible for his acts.
did this man at the time have
any mental standards or defenses
left to support him in his
choice?" asked Defense Counsel
Guy Emery.
No Voluntary Choice.
"I don't think he could have
done that at the time-not make
a voluntary choice" DR.. Kleiner-
man replied.
Under cross-examination by
Col. c. Robert Bard, the prose-
cutor, DR.. Kleinerman said
patients of his type have been
In st. Elizabeth's Hospital"
His thinking was not rational
at that time in our sense of the
word" he stated as he told of
examining Corpl. Dickinson at
Fort Belvoir for two hours and
going over Army medical rec
ordS.
When Col. Emery began ques-
tioning the witness about the
corporals sanity during the time
of his imprisonment in North
Korea, Col. Richard F. Scarbor-
ough, the law officer who acts
as judge in a court-martial, in
terrupted to ask:
"Are you raising the question
of the accused's insanity at the
time of his alleged activities?"
That is correct" replied Col.
Emery.
Cites Background.
DR.. Kleinerman said he be-
lieved Corpl. Dickinson fits into
a pattern: what is known as a
passive. regressive personality.
Such a condition usually de-
velopS when there is a back
ground such as was Corpl. Dick
enson's environment in early life.
They get the feeling that no
one really cares. There is a
tendency to gain recognition by
trying to do things.
when he finds that that
doesn't work. he tends to fight
it. Then the patient decides
in his own mind that he might
as we'll go back to his original
status and develops guilt feel
ing"
Ruling on Testimony.
A ruling was scheduled later
today on the admission of dep
osition by Maj. Gen. William
F. Dean as defense evidence.
Col. Bard, late yesterday
strongly objected to admission
of the deposition by the general,
who was the highest ranking
American prisoner of the Com
muniSts in Korea. He charged
it had no connection with any
issue in the case against Corpl.
Dickinson. .-.t.
Mrs. Van Buren, Dickinson, 46-
year-old mother of the corporal u
had been scheduled to testify
today. But Col. Emery said she
would not be called because of
a nervous attack she suffered
outside the courtroom at Fort
Lesley j. McNair yesterday. Capt.
Louis o. Breener, post surgeon
who attended her. expressed the
opinion she would be able to
testify after a nights rest, but
Col. Emery would not take the
FISK. Mrs. Dickinson Will be
called later.
Testimony Attacked.
The defense yesterday began
attacking testimony by prosecu-
ton witnesses who have testified
that Corpl. Dickinson squealed on
them to obtain better treatment
for himself. causing them to be
beaten and otherwise mistreated.
DR.. Philip Bloemsma of 5911
Sixteenth street NV, a psychi-
artist and general surgeon who
was held captive by the japanese
during World War II, was called
to the stand. He is native of
the Netherlands.
He told of being medical Off
Ger in charge of a hospital in
AlST