Along with Deepak Chopra and other experts, I appeared on the Larry King Live show on CNN tonight.
The topic: a brutal gang rape that took place following a homecoming dance at a high school in Richmond, California. This horrific crime involved 10 assailants who robbed, beat, and raped the 15-year-old victim.
What is even more disturbing is that another 10 onlookers watched the crime unfold but did NOTHING to stop it. They didn’t even call 911. Why didn’t anyone stop it?
The thought that 10 people watched what was happening to this young woman and did nothing is unconscionable. We all want to believe that we would never do that. But the truth is that in high-adrenaline situations, many of us become frozen with fear and can’t do anything.
Plus, in groups when there is a high-adrenaline situation, people stop thinking for themselves and go with the predominant emotion at the time. Unfortunately many people are followers, so if you get a deranged sick person who is intoxicated (with no judgment) other people will follow them.
At the Amen Clinics, we have studied the brains of several hundred violent criminals, including school shooters. This study revealed that young murderers have brains that are different from those of older murderers.
What we see in most of the brains of violent teens is low activity in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), the area of the brain involved with judgment, impulse control, and empathy.
The PFC is the most human, thoughtful part of the brain and it is not fully developed until we reach the age of 25.
The Richmond police said that the teenage perpetrators they have in custody have shown no remorse during police interviews. No remorse equals no empathy, which equals low PFC activity.
One of the assailants in custody is a high school dropout. This means that he may already have some brain-related problems.
Another important aspect of this crime is that alcohol was involved. Alcohol consumption lowers overall brain function and reduces activity in the PFC, which explains why people tend to do stupid things when they are drunk.
Of course, none of this is an excuse for what happened. It is WRONG!
According to the police, the victim in this crime had consumed a large amount of alcohol by the time the assault began. This means that her judgment center was off and she may not have thought through the situation that she was putting herself in. This may have put her at a higher risk for something like this to happen.
In no way does this mean that this was in any way her fault. It wasn’t.
Reports indicate that the victim had been verbally abused by her classmates in the past. Kids who are teased and tormented by other kids tend to drink to fit in or to manage their own anxiety. Drinking impairs their judgment and puts them in higher-risk situations
I really feel for this young woman. I have three daughters, and I can’t imagine something so heinous happening to any of them.
It makes me wonder how much damage this event will do to her brain. People who undergo extremely traumatic events, such as a rape, often develop brain disorders, such as posttraumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). This debilitating disorder causes people to replay and relive the painful events over and over and can lead to insomnia, anxiety, and other problems.
This young victim is going to need a lot of help to recover from this trauma.
If you would like to see more about this violent crime, visit the Larry King Live website.
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I appreciated your insight to this tragic event. Where did you say “Biology of Bravery” appeared?
Thanks so much for sharing this. As someone who was recovered from post traumatic stress I too am concerned for this young woman and all those involved…including the law enforcement folks, et al who are at risk for vicarious trauma. Because of your work and so many others we now know that trauma is not an intractable condition…the brain can heal! The guided imagery research is expanding rapidly and being added as a key treatment piece. The folks at Health Journeys are offering guided imagery downloads to our troops and their families. I count my recovery and the healing process that is continuing in great part to their well-researched and developed imageries. Added to all that I have learned from you and your books I am a living, breathing example of recovery/healing from pts. Thanks once again to you and yours for all you have given us!
Dr. Amen, When are you putting 3 SPECT clinics in the Tri-State area?
New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania certainly need you and your staff.
The Biology of Bravery appeared in Men’s Health.