Opinion ID: 749913
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Evidence Presented by Current Counsel

Text: 62 After the death penalty was imposed, new counsel was appointed to represent Bloom in his post-conviction, post-sentencing proceedings. His new counsel presented significant evidence relating to Bloom's mental state at the time of the murders. Although this evidence was readily available to Bloom's trial counsel, his trial counsel had failed to provide the information to Dr. Kling or to any other physician who examined Bloom. The information discloses that Bloom suffered a long history of severe childhood abuse. He was born into a family plagued by generations of mental illness and domestic abuse. Both of Bloom's grandfathers physically abused their wives and Bloom, Sr. was subject to physical abuse from his father. Bloom's paternal grandfather was hospitalized for episodes described as 'nervous breakdowns.'  There was more. 63 The marriage of Bloom's parents (Bloom, Sr. and Melanie) also was severely dysfunctional. Bloom, Sr. physically abused Melanie, and both Bloom, Sr. and Melanie physically abused Bloom. The physical abuse began when Bloom was very young. On one occasion, Melanie threw Bloom across the room when he was a baby. Melanie also held a gun to Bloom's head for forty-five minutes because Bloom would not reveal the identity of Tony, Bloom's imaginary friend. 64 Melanie divorced Bloom, Sr. when Bloom was six years old. Bloom was then left in Bloom, Sr.'s care. 65 Bloom, Sr. physically abused Bloom throughout Bloom's life. The nature of this abuse is summarized as:[Bloom, Sr.] initiated an almost ritualized sequence in which he would push, slap, and punch [Bloom], all the while working himself into an escalating rage. He would then grab [Bloom] by the hair and yank his head down, throwing him to the floor. He would then pounce on [Bloom], who would be lying face down, and push his head into the floor or carpet. [Bloom, Sr.] would then pound [Bloom] with closed fists all over his back while screaming obscenities. At various other times [Bloom, Sr.] used a variety of different objects to beat [Bloom]. There are specific references, from [Bloom] and contemporary witnesses, of a telephone and a baseball bat being used. 66 Bloom suffered from illnesses and was exposed to medications which could affect his mental state. Since her birth, Melanie, Bloom's mother, had epilepsy and suffered grand mal seizures. During her pregnancy with Bloom, Melanie took Dilantin, which is a powerful anti-epileptic medication now known to cause physical malformations and central nervous system damage to infants exposed prenatally to it. 67 When Bloom was two years old, he almost drowned in a swimming pool. He was rushed to a hospital and pronounced dead on arrival. He was revived after a cardiac injection of adrenaline. 68 At age eleven, Bloom became chronically ill with a nephrotic kidney condition. He was given prednisone, a powerful steroid that often causes psychiatric consequences.... This medication caused him to develop Cushing Syndrome, which frequently leads to psychiatric symptoms that include psychosis and agitation. 69 In addition to the foregoing, current counsel presented evidence that within five months before the murders, a psychiatric report had been prepared which stated Bloom was in need of inpatient psychiatric care. The report was prepared in connection with an incident which occurred in November 1981. Bloom had been arrested for robbery after he attempted to steal a purse from a woman in a bible study class. He was arrested after police officers observed him acting strangely. After this 1981 arrest, the state court appointed Dr. Richard Naham, a psychiatrist, to evaluate Bloom. In his report, Dr. Naham opines: 70 (1) The defendant is a potential danger to himself and to others in the community. 71 (2) He would benefit from inpatient psychiatric treatment in a state psychiatric hospital. 72 (3) He is not presently suitable for outpatient treatment. 73 ... 74 I recommend that he be committed to a state psychiatric hospital with adequate security precautions, until such time as he has improved enough to no longer be a danger to the community, and has obtained sufficient insight to benefit and participate meaningfully in outpatient psychiatric treatment. There is no doubt in my mind that without suitable inpatient psychiatric treatment he will continue to present an inordinate danger to others. (Emphasis in original). 75 Jail records during Bloom's pretrial and trial incarceration on the murder charges in this case also evidence the possibility that Bloom was suffering from a mental illness. Prior to trial, Bloom attempted suicide. The jail medical records show that he was referred for psychiatric observation and treatment. A jail psychologist reported that Bloom experienced auditory and visual hallucinations and could 'see things in the future.'  Although easily obtainable, Bloom's trial counsel gathered none of this evidence. 76 Bloom's current counsel presented all of the foregoing information to Dr. Kling and the other physicians who evaluated Bloom. These physicians, including Dr. Kling, submitted declarations during the post-conviction, post-sentencing proceedings in which they opine that Bloom's trial counsel provided insufficient information. They state that, as a result, the initial evaluations were inaccurate, and they opine that Bloom suffers from a mental disease which affected his ability to appreciate the nature of his acts at the time of the murders. The following summarizes these current declarations. 77 Dr. Kling states the documents he received from Bloom's current counsel were critical to any reliable assessment of [Bloom's] mental functioning at the time of the offenses.... He further states: 78 I had not been briefed on the mental state issues that would be raised at [Bloom's] trial. I viewed my original report as an effort to assess, on the basis of a brief interview, [Bloom's] ability to stand trial and to formulate a psychiatric diagnosis. 79 After reviewing the information provided by Bloom's current counsel, Kling opines: 80 Mr. Bloom's actions were triggered and governed by a predictable and intense emotional response to years of abuse and victimization by his father. Mr. Bloom's actions were not the result of deliberate reflection, thoughtful judgment, or even remote consideration of the consequences of his deeds. 81 ... 82 [A]t the time he shot his stepmother and shot and stabbed his stepsister, he was very likely in a state of mental disorganization. These latter two homicides were surely not the product of careful thought, reflection, or a weighing of consequences.... 83 Dr. Fuenzalida, the doctor who performed the neurological evaluation for Bloom's trial, states that when he agreed to conduct the trial evaluation, he expected to be further consulted regarding the purpose of the examination and provided with information regarding Mr. Bloom and the circumstances of the crime for which he was charged. He, however, merely received notice that [he] had been appointed by the court and that Mr. Bloom was to be transported to [his] offices for the neurological examination. Fuenzalida was not informed of the specific charges or of the nature of the proceedings against Bloom and was never told to what purpose [his] evaluation was to be used. After reviewing the documents presented by Bloom's current counsel, Fuenzalida opines: 84 I believe that the circumstances surrounding Mr. Bloom's referral to me and my neurological evaluation led to an incomplete and misleading assessment of Mr. Bloom's mental status at the time that I examined him. 85 ... 86 My neurological evaluation and preliminary diagnosis should not and may not be read to exclude the possibility that Mr. Bloom may have had brain damage at the time of my examination. 87 ... 88 Indeed, unaware of the purpose of my evaluation, I assumed--incorrectly--that my services were sought to determine whether Mr. Bloom suffered from a seizure disorder. 89 The focus of my evaluation was skewed because [trial counsel] failed to provide me with background information relevant to Mr. Bloom's mental functioning. 90 ... 91 Because I lacked even rudimentary information about the purpose of my evaluation and Mr. Bloom's history, I was forced to rely entirely on Mr. Bloom's self-reporting for this critical information. Thus, I was unable to tailor my evaluation accordingly or to interpret accurately the information provided me by Mr. Bloom. 92 [The information provided by current counsel] would have provided me with further avenues of inquiry, and more specifically they would have alerted me that Mr. Bloom's blackouts were not a result of seizure activity, but rather had psychiatric origins. 93 During the trial, other physicians had examined Bloom and reported on his mental status. After Bloom entered a plea of insanity, the state trial court appointed Dr. Julian Kivowitz to examine him. Kivowitz was asked to determine whether Bloom was sane at the time of the murders and whether he had the capacity to deliberate, premeditate, and meaningfully reflect upon the gravity of his actions. 94 Kivowitz states that, for his initial evaluation, he was given only the order of appointment, and at the time of the initial evaluation he was not even aware that Bloom had been charged with the murders of his stepmother and stepsister or that Bloom had entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. He states the information provided by current counsel was critically relevant to an accurate evaluation. He opines his original evaluation was not only irrelevant but also drastically misleading. After reviewing the information provided by current counsel, Kivowitz opines: 95 Mr. Bloom's actions on the day of the offense resulted from overwhelming terror that any reasonable person would experience if subjected to years of similar abuse as a child. 96 ... 97 [F]ollowing the firing of the first shot at his father, Mr. Bloom was in a transitory dissociative state, and experiencing an episode of intermittent altered mental state. Thus, due to his mental impairments and dissociative disorder, Mr. Bloom did not have the mental capacity to deliberate, to premeditate, to harbor malice, nor did Mr. Bloom have the mental capacity to meaningfully and maturely reflect upon the gravity of his contemplated acts. 98 The state trial court also had appointed Dr. William Vicary to examine Bloom. After the jury returned the death sentence, the state trial court appointed Vicary to determine whether Bloom was competent to be sentenced. At that time, Vicary opined Bloom was competent. 99 Prior to his examination of Bloom, Vicary was given only a copy of the transcript of the preliminary hearing. In a declaration submitted during the post-conviction proceedings, Vicary explains he and his staff tried to contact trial counsel prior to the examination to gain relevant background information on Bloom. Vicary states: 100 After I informed [trial counsel's] office that the clerk of the court had contacted my office and had informed me that the court desired Mr. Bloom to be examined regardless of whether I received any information about the case, I received a copy of the preliminary hearing. [Trial counsel's] office provided me with no other documents or records or any information regarding the relationship that [trial counsel] had with his client or accounts of his client's behavior. 101 Vicary reviewed the information provided by Bloom's current counsel and states this information is material that I should have been provided prior to my evaluation of Mr. Bloom in 1984. After reviewing this information, Vicary opines: Mr. Bloom's family, social, and medical history offers compelling evidence that he suffers from serious mental disorders and brain damage. Vicary states that, had he been provided with this information at the time of his original evaluation, he would have altered his conclusions. In his most recent declaration, Vicary opines: 102 At the time of the offenses for which Mr. Bloom has been convicted, sufficient data existed to show that his actions were the result of an explosive outburst that was precipitated by his deep terror and resentment of his father. Any reasonable person in a similar situation would react similarly. He had no plan to harm his stepmother or stepsister. 103 Also, during the post-conviction proceedings, Dr. Dale Watson, a psychologist, evaluated Bloom with a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery. Watson describes Bloom's abnormal behavior and opines: The neuropsychological battery gave striking, consistent and clear evidence of cognitive sensori-motor deficits, brain dysfunction and brain damage. (Emphasis in original). He further opines this brain damage is long-standing and pre-dates the instant offenses. 104 Finally, Esther Horney, a social worker, submitted a declaration during the post-conviction proceedings. Horney worked with Bloom when he was awaiting trial. Based on Bloom's erratic behavior, Horney believed Bloom had been subject to severe trauma. Horney states she became aware of Bloom's clinical mental instability after the first few sessions. She states that on several occasions ... [Bloom] had incredibly intense outbursts.... He lost control of his body, became contorted, and screamed at the top of his lungs. Horney tried to get psychiatric help or a psychiatric evaluation to no avail. She also attempted to contact Bloom's trial counsel but was unable to. She states: 105 I was appalled by [trial counsel's] behavior in this case. Soon after my first visit with [Bloom], I began to try to get in touch with [trial counsel] to inform him about [Bloom's] mental problems. I continued to try to contact [trial counsel] on a weekly basis until I retired.