Full opinion text
ORDER GRANTING IN PART PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS RONALD S. W. LEW, District Judge. This matter is before the Court on petitioner Francis Hernandez’s petition for writ of habeas corpus. The Court has read the parties’ briefs, together with supporting documentation. For the reasons and in the manner set forth below, the Court hereby GRANTS IN PART the petition for writ of habeas corpus based upon the ineffective assistance of counsel, jury misconduct and cumulative error. I. Factual Background An L.A. County jury convicted Francis Hernandez of two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of forcible rape and two counts of sodomy. The jury found true the special circumstance allegations that each murder occurred during the commission of rape and sodomy and that petitioner was convicted of more than one murder. At penalty, the prosecution presented no evidence in aggravation. The defense presented evidence that petitioner was young and drunk at the time of the crimes, that he came from a dysfunctional home, that he probably had borderline personality disorder, that he once helped a friend and that his life should be spared due to the love of his family and friends and his chance for religious salvation. Petitioner testified at the penalty phase, but only about the circumstances of the crime. The jury recommended death. The trial court condemned petitioner. Petitioner was eighteen at the time of the crimes. II. Procedural History On direct appeal, the California Supreme Court vacated the multiple-murder special circumstance but otherwise affirmed petitioner’s conviction and sentence. People v. Hernandez, 47 Cal.3d 315, 253 Cal.Rptr. 199, 763 P.2d 1289 (1988). Petitioner filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in this Court on August 28, 1990. Two years later, petitioner filed his second state habeas petition in the California Supreme Court in order to exhaust claims contained in his federal petition. The state court denied the exhaustion petition several months later. Petitioner returned to federal court, filing an amended petition on March 18, 1993. Litigation concerning a motion to dismiss and a motion for summary judgment ensued for many years. The Court ultimately granted partial summary judgment to respondent. The Court then granted an evidentiary hearing on three issues of jury misconduct and two claims of ineffective assistance of counsel (“IAC”). The Court bifurcated the evidentiary hearing on IAC, directing the parties to address deficient performance and prejudice separately. For six years, the parties conducted a paper evidentiary hearing on juror misconduct and IAC. III. Discussion A. Mental Health Evidence Many of petitioner’s claims involve mental health evidence, including whether he had the requisite mens rea at the time of the crime and whether counsel failed to investigate and present mitigating evidence, among others. The mental health evidence falls into two categories: evidence gathered before petitioner’s capital trial and evidence gathered and presented as part of petitioner’s federal evidentiary hearing. Both are summarized here. 1. Mental health evidence known before trial Prior to trial, seven experts had contact with petitioner. Trial counsel had access to the opinions of each of these experts. Petitioner had been incarcerated in the California Youth Authority (“CYA”) following a conviction for second-degree burglary for breaking into a drug store. CYA clinical psychologist Audrey Prentiss evaluated petitioner in August of 1979, about 18 months before the murders took place. Dr. Prentiss found that petitioner functioned “within the high average range of intellectual ability.” (7 CDD at P01214.) Dr. Prentiss concluded: [Petitioner] showed confidence in himself and in his abilities and has good social skills. He tends toward ingratiating behavior that is somewhat manipulative in quality. His behavior is characteristic of an antisocial personality in that he is aware of what he is doing, realizes that he is capable of doing it and goes about doing it with impunity. He perceives the environment in selfish terms without regard for the possible consequences that it may have on others. This attitude appeared to have been related to the fact that this ward has had to assume a lot of responsibility for himself at a young age and has learned to manipulate the environment for his own needs. Having had to assume this responsibility, he had difficulties in accepting the pressures that are part of it.... There were no indications of organicity nor of a neurological dysfunction. He is not suicidal or homicidal. (Id. at P01215-16.) Deputy public defender John Torelli initially represented petitioner for his capital prosecution, though Torelli withdrew before trial due to a conflict. Torelli consulted three mental health experts: clinical psychologist Michael P. Maloney and psychiatrists Michael B. Coburn and Alvin E. Davis. Torelli provided Dr. Maloney with the preliminary hearing transcript; the information, the autopsy, arrest and crime reports; and a five-page account of petitioner’s background, which focused mostly on petitioner’s adoptive parents and contained very little information about petitioner’s biological parents. (JTD at P00814-23 (Exhs. 12-16).) Torelli asked Dr. Maloney to “conduct a full psychological evaluation, including all the standard testing that you would normally give to a prospective patient,” and sought Dr. Maloney’s opinion “as to any major psychological or minor psychological disorder, including, but not limited to, anything involving a defense, such as insanity, diminished capacity or mitigation in the penalty phase.” (JTD at P00814.) Dr. Maloney concluded that while petitioner did not appear psychotic, the “data do suggest some potentially serious psychological problems.” (Id. at P00829.) Dr. Maloney found that petitioner had a “highly pathological profile” and that he had significant elevations on scales measuring hypomania, schizophrenia, psychopathic deviate and paranoia. (Id.) People with similar profiles “are often described as having episodes during which they are seen a demanding, confused, hostile, hyperactive, panicky and circumstantial. They may additionally be restless, evasive and high strung.” (Id.) Petitioner’s profile suggested “a fair amount of hostility.” (Id.) Dr. Maloney explained that people with profiles similar to petitioner “show intense overreaction to normal rejection” and may exhibit a “tendency to be susceptible to sexual identity confusions.” (Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).) Dr. Maloney stated that “the most likely descriptive diagnosis is schizo-manic episode. This would suggest a state wherein there is some breakdown in the thinking processes combined with an elevated or manic-like state.” (Id. at P00830.) While the most technical diagnosis would be schizophrenia, Dr. Maloney stated that petitioner “shows no overt signs of schizophrenia, but he clearly does appear to have a variety of psychological problems.” (Id.) Dr. Maloney concluded as follows: The present data suggest that we have an individual who functions in the normal range of general intelligence with no suggestion of any specific eognitive-intellectual or perceptual deficit. He also does not manifest any of the primary signs of a major condition such as psychosis. Present data do, however, indicate that he has significant psychological problems and comes from a very unstable background with multiple noted difficulties relating to his parents as well as problems between his parents. I was able to obtain from Mr. Hernandez a fairly specific account of the events occurring at the time of the present alleged offenses. As you know, at both of these times he was drinking heavily, but he is, nevertheless, able to recall a number of his activities and behaviors. (Id. at P00830.) Dr. Maloney testified at the penalty phase. He opined that he “had no data to suggest that [petitioner] would not be responsible for his behavior” at the time of the crime and that petitioner “was drinking at the time [of the crimes] but beyond that, he should have had the capacity to understand what he was doing.” (14 RT 3473); see also 14 RT 2374 (“I have no information to indicate that he shouldn’t have been able to appreciate [what he was doing].... I have no data to indicate that he was psychotic or severely disturbed at [the time of the crime.]”) Torelli also consulted Dr. Coburn. Torelli sent Dr. Coburn the same materials sent to Dr. Maloney, but also added Dr. Maloney’s report, the transcripts of petitioner’s confession and petitioner’s statement to his girlfriend. Torelli asked Dr. Coburn to evaluate whether petitioner was competent to stand trial, insane, capable of forming the specific intent to commit any crime, particularly rape, and whether petitioner suffered from any mental disease or defect or an emotional or psychological disorder that could provide mitigating evidence at the penalty phase. (JTD at P00831-32.) Dr. Coburn interviewed petitioner for a total of two hours. Dr. Co-burn concluded that petitioner was sane at the time of the offenses, that petitioner “would have been capable of forming all of the requisite intents involved in varying degrees of homicide” and that “there is no indication that he would have lacked the capacity to form any specific intent in regards to the sexual aspects of the case.” (Id. at P00841.) Dr. Coburn’s primary diagnosis of petitioner was “[s]imple intoxication due to alcohol at the time of the offenses.” (Id. at P00840.) Dr. Coburn also opined that petitioner suffered from “[v]ery severe mixed personality disorder with passive-aggressive and antisocial components” and that he experienced “[minimal environmental stress at the time of the offenses” along with “[m]oderate early childhood psychosocial stressors.” (Id. at P00840.) Dr. Coburn suggested that, using the data provided by Dr. Maloney, trial counsel could argue that petitioner “did not in fact intend to kill, but merely intended to ‘quiet’ the victims. Given his passive-aggressive or explosive and antisocial demeanor, one could technically argue that his need to quiet them was paramount, and that it was his intolerance of defiance which led to the acts.” (Id. at P00841.) Dr. Coburn added, however, that he “did not harbor an opinion with reasonable certainty that would allow [him] personally to testify in that” manner. (Id. at P00841.) Dr. Coburn did not testify at trial. Finally, Dr. Davis evaluated petitioner. Torelli sent Dr. Davis the same materials sent to Dr. Coburn. Torelli asked Dr. Davis to evaluate whether petitioner was competent to stand trial, insane, whether the defense of diminished capacity could succeed and whether petitioner suffered from any mental disease or difficulty that could provide mitigating evidence at the penalty phase. (Id. at P00844-46.) Dr. Davis diagnosed petitioner with passive-aggressive personality disorder, which involves “anti-social and aggressive acting out,” including drug and alcohol abuse. (Id. at P00547.) Dr. Davis concluded that petitioner was sane at the time of the offenses and “had the mental capacity to form specific intent, premeditate, and harbor malice,” though “his capacity to deliberate or to maturely reflect was impaired by intoxication.” (Id. at P00547.) Dr. Davis noted that it was plausible that petitioner did not intend to kill the victims, but that his confession showed a lack of overt emotion, consistent with antisocial personality disorder. (Id. at P00548.) Dr. Davis did not testify at trial. At some point after obtaining these expert opinions, Torelli withdrew. Charles Downing took over petitioner’s representation. Downing represented petitioner for many months preceding trial through sentencing. Downing’s representation is the subject of petitioner’s IAC claims. Torelli transmitted his file, which included correspondence with Drs. Maloney, Coburn and Davis, as well as each expert’s report, to Downing. Downing consulted three additional experts: clinical and forensic psychologist Faye Girsh, gastroenterologist Amer Rayyes and forensic pathologist S.M. Rabson. Downing provided Dr. Girsh with the reports of Drs. Maloney, Coburn and Davis, as well as Torelli’s correspondence with each expert. Downing informed Dr. Girsh that he was going to pursue an insanity defense because “Hernandez is either insane or he will be gassed.” (5 CDD P00521.) Trial counsel explained his theory of the case to Dr. Girsh: I have what I am sure is a hopelessly simplistic view. I think that Francis was one way or another killing his mother. I also am convinced that he is an individual who is crazy that somehow or another keeps his insanity in check so long as he is sober but, with the ingestion of alcohol, whatever it is that permits him to appear sane vanishes and his personality reverts to that which is normal for him, namely nuts. I guess in my simplistic view this is sort of the converse of diminished capacity. In that condition one who is normally sane ingests alcohol or whatever and does something crazy with the loss of inhibitions or whatever. I should note that these offenses were committed at a time when diminished capacity was available as a defense. (Id. at P00524.) Dr. Girsh did not provide trial counsel with a written report, but the record contains trial counsel’s notes from a conversation he had with Dr. Girsh before trial. The notes include Dr. Girsh’s assessment of petitioner: Personality [illegible] a real puzzle: Francis is an apparent anti-social personality disorder type = sociopath. Of 15 criteria, he meets 12. Can’t diagnosis as such due to age. Why age makes a difference? Because, until age 24 or so, personality malleable, can change. Maturation is best therapy for sociopathic personality. He is, presently, classified as a juvenile with such tendencies. Characteristics of syndrome is that he doesn’t care about anything: kills just for hell of it, tortures to cause pain, etc. Also, explosive, intermittent violent conduct; that’s him. [Illegible] drives through plate glass window in van for burglary. That is sociopathic stuff, not what I want. Get Book: “Clockwork Orange” — a profile of a true sociopath. (Id. at P00518.) While counsel worried that the jury’s rejection of a diminished capacity defense at the guilt phase would harm the penalty phase, Dr. Girsh disagreed. (Id. at P00517.) Counsel questioned whether he could use Dr. Girsh to suggest that petitioner killed the victims by accident but without putting on a full-blown diminished capacity defense. That strategy would force the prosecution to ask questions about specific intent on cross examination, ultimately supporting a diminished capacity jury instruction. Dr. Girsh testified at the penalty phase. She opined that petitioner was “essentially out of control” when he committed both crimes. (14 RT 3583.) “[Apparently at the time that [petitioner] suffocated or strangled the women, he had lost control. He was in some kind of a fit of rage or panic or something that was different from his usual state.” (Id. at 3584.) Petitioner’s behavior was associated with substance abuse disorders and borderline personality disorder. (Id.) A person with borderline personality has periods of self-destructive behavior because the individual is not sure of his identity. (Id. at 3585.) Dr. Girsh hesitated to diagnose petitioner with borderline personality disorder, as the diagnosis can only be made once a person is 18. (Id.) Because petitioner was “just 18” at the time of the murders, “the diagnosis really would not have applied.” (Id.) On cross-examination, Dr. Girsh testified that self-destructive behavior also was a symptom of antisocial personality disorder. (Id. at 3599.) Dr. Rayyes, a gastroenterologist specializing in alcoholism and drug addiction, testified at the penalty phase. Counsel and his wife both had suffered from alcoholism. Before trial, Dr. Rayyes had conducted an intervention with counsel’s wife, and, later, with counsel. Dr. Rayyes diagnosed petitioner with alcoholism. Dr. Rayyes testified that petitioner would have been “severely impaired” at the time of the crimes and, accordingly, that petitioner would have been unable to form the specific intent to kill. (12 RT 3069-70.) On cross examination, Dr. Rayyes initially repeated his belief that an alcoholic who has been drinking cannot form a specific intent to kill. (13 RT 3082.) When pressed, however, Dr. Rayyes testified that it is “possible” for an inebriated alcoholic to form the specific intent to steal or to kill, and that an intoxicated alcoholic can form the specific intent to commit rape or sodomy. (12 RT 3083, 3084, 3085.) Downing also consulted Dr. Rabson, a forensic pathologist. Trial counsel sent Dr. Rabson the autopsy photographs and reports, a transcript of the coroner’s testimony from the preliminary hearing and petitioner’s statement to the police. Trial counsel asked Dr. Rabson to look for any evidence that either of the victims was moved after death, if sexual intercourse could have been consensual, if the bite marks on the breasts of the victims could have occurred during intercourse or if they were post-mortem, if the vaginal and anal injuries could have occurred postmortem and if Dr. Rabson would come to any different conclusions from the coroner. (5 CDD at P00530.) A document in trial counsel’s file memorializes counsel’s discussion with Dr. Rabson. Trial counsel noted that “Dr. Rabson tends to be somewhat judgmental, probably due to his [J]ewish upbringing, and has formed the opinion that Hernandez is an obvious, clear sociopath and ought to spend the rest of his life behind bars. (Id. at P00532.) Dr. Rabson concluded that the condition of the victims’ bodies was consistent with asphyxiation or strangulation, that Bristol may have been moved after she died, that the intercourse in both cases likely was not consensual and that the bite marks and the various vaginal and anal injuries were inflicted pre-mortem. (Id.) Dr. Rabson opined that the coroner conducted the autopsies in a professional and competent manner, other than her failure to investigate Ryan’s abnormally large heart, which did not contribute to the victim’s death. (Id.) Dr. Rabson did not testify at trial. 2. Mental health evidence presented in evidentiary hearing As part of the evidentiary hearing, petitioner presented the testimony of psychologist June Madsen Clausen, psychiatrist Dorothy Otnow Lewis, criminologist Sheila Balkan, clinical psychologist Charles Sanislow and neuropsychologist Ruben Gur. Respondent presented the testimony of just one expert: clinical psychologist Daniel Martell. a. Psychologist June Madsen Clausen Dr. Clausen is a psychology professor at the University of San Francisco, where she teaches advanced courses in clinical child psychology, counseling psychology, abnormal psychology and child maltreatment. She conducts research on children, adolescents and young adults who have been placed in the child welfare system due to abuse or neglect and provides outpatient psychotherapy to trauma survivors. (Clausen Decl. at 1, ¶2.) Petitioner asked Dr. Clausen to take his social history and to evaluate the effect his background had on both his psychological development and his functioning as an adult, including at the time of the crimes. (Id. at 2, ¶ 4.) Dr. Clausen reviewed witness declarations, educational reports, probation and Youth Authority reports, court records, psychological reports and other materials. She interviewed petitioner five times for a total often hours. She also interviewed petitioner’s adoptive mother. (Id.) Dr. Clausen provided a detailed social history of petitioner: Francis Hernandez is an adopted child.... Francis was a child born into unfavorable circumstances. He is the product of a brief, tumultuous union between a depressed, troubled fourteen-year-old girl and a disturbed, drug-addicted eighteen-year-old boy. Both of Francis’s [biological] parents reportedly have family histories of mental illness. During Francis’s in útero development, his mother consumed marijuana and alcohol, and his father was episodically violent toward his mother. These circumstances often contribute to neurological and psychological vulnerabilities of the kinds that later complicated Francis’s development. He was a child born with special needs. Francis’s mother gave him up for adoption at birth, and soon after he was placed in the home of an adoptive mother and father[,] both of whom were struggling with severe psychiatric and psychological problems. Both Francis’s parents were raised and formed their ideas of family life in violent homes bereft of warmth, caring, nurturing, and attention to the developmental needs of others. In addition, Francis’s [adoptive] mother also suffered from schizophrenia and was episodically psychotic throughout Francis’s childhood. She attempted suicide more than once, spent months-long periods in psychiatric hospitals, and returned home so heavily medicated that she was unable to attend to her own daily living requirements, let alone Francis’s. She also failed to adhere to the prescribed regimen of psychotropic medication and she became psychotic, at times violently. Francis’s father was a paranoid man prone to sudden, violent, and angry outbursts, who never learned to recognize the emotional needs or the distress of others. He was by all accounts, either unable or unwilling to recognize the gravity of living with a psychiatrically ill spouse and a troubled young child. During Francis’s childhood, his father regularly left [Francis] home alone with his mother, often for week-long periods. (Id. at 2-3, ¶¶ 6-8.) Petitioner’s birth mother, Patricia (“Pat”) Ramos (formerly Urbano, originally Myers), has a family history of depression, bipolar disorder and chemical dependency, all heritable conditions. (Id. at 4, ¶ 12.) Pat takes Paxil, an antidepressant, and has taken Elavil, another antidepressant. She suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, as well insomnia, for which she takes tranquilizers nightly. (Id. at 7 ¶ 20.) In addition, petitioner’s biological father and his family also exhibited signs and symptoms of mental illness. Dr. Clausen provided the following information: Francis’[s] biological father Anthony (Tony) Marquez, was the last of eleven children born to Paulino and Loretta Marquez, immigrants from Mexico. Anecdotal evidence gathered from surviving family members suggests that, of Francis’s paternal grandparents, both exhibited behaviors consistent with those of individuals with affective disorders. Family members report that at least twenty-three of [petitioner’s biological paternal] cousins have had drug problems. Two have been diagnosed with schizophrenia, one with depression, and one was so extremely hyperactive as a child that he chewed on his hand, nearly capsized a refrigerator onto himself, and had to run circles around a building before he could enter and visit family members inside — behavior, not incidentally, that bears striking clinical resemblance to that of Francis Hernandez as a child. Like many members of his family, Francis’s biological father, Tony Marquez, has struggled with drugs and mental illness throughout his life. Tony is a sixty-year-old man whose limited intellectual functioning and obvious psychiatric impairments keep even a minimal level of self-sufficiency beyond his reach. He has spent most of his life incarcerated. According to Social Security!,] his only reported income was $74.20 in 1963 and $74.93 in 1967. Tony Marquez is a man whose impairments have made it impossible for him to function independently within the law and without the use of drugs. (Id. at 9, ¶ 24; 13-14, ¶40; 14-15, ¶41.) Tony’s prison records describe psychological symptoms that are consistent with clinical depression, mania, substance dependence, and florid psychosis. (Id. at 18, 51.) Prison staff described his condition as “acute psychosis” and as a “disassociation from reality.” (Id. at 19, 55 (internal quotation marks omitted).) Tony’s condition was sufficiently alarming to prison staff that he was transferred to the prison psychiatric ward after tearing up his sheets. (Id. at 19, ¶¶ 55 (internal quotation marks omitted).) Tony’s psychosis continued: [H]aving apparently failed to respond to the treatment offered by San Quentin, Tony was transferred to the California Medical Facility (CMF) in Vacaville, California, a hospital for acutely ill inmates of the California prison system. Within a few days of his arrival at CMF, he was written up for tearing up his bedding. The disciplinary report for the incident notes that he did so “to decorate his house.” While he was being treated at CMF, Tony was administered Prolixin and Thorazine — two powerful antipsychotic medications. The doctors at CMF discussed the use of electro-convulsive therapy on Tony. This consideration suggests that his psychosis was severe and that it failed to remit under his prescribed medication. (Id. at 20-21, ¶¶ 58-59.) Dr. Clausen also provided information about petitioner’s adopted mother: Naomi Schilling (now Kuhl)[,] Francis Hernandez’s adoptive mother, also inherited a predisposition to mental illness. Naomi’s parents, a prodromally schizophrenic mother and a depressed, alcoholic father, created a household characterized by extreme isolation, frequent violence and delusional religious fanaticism — the same poisonous atmosphere in which Francis would later be immersed. One of Naomi’s lifelong challenges manifested itself as a cognitive deficit. Even when she was a very young girl, Naomi’s family considered her “different.” During her childhood, she was uncommunicative, shy and visibly “unhappy all the time.” Naomi recalls being socially isolated and exceptionally shy, attempting to pass the days in school with as few words as possible.... Naomi suffered from extreme social impairments and members of her family apparently worried that she might be retarded, and her mother openly stated that she thought Naomi was slow.... Naomi’s longstanding severe mental illness went undiagnosed until she was thirty years old when the doctors overseeing her months-long inpatient hospitalization in an Orange County psychiatric institution verified that she was suffering from schizophrenia. Since that time[,] she has been psychiatrically hospitalized no fewer than ten times. Over the course of these hospitalizations, medical and mental health professionals have documented many details of Naomi’s life. These documents show that Naomi internalized and replicated the psychopathologies with which she grew up, in particular her family’s violence, its obsession with sex, and its unwavering religious fanaticism. {Id. at 21, ¶ 61; 28-29, ¶¶ 77-78 (citations omitted).) Additionally, Dr. Clausen gathered information about petitioner’s adoptive father. Frank Hernandez, Francis Hernandez’s adoptive father, also came from a severely troubled family governed by the complicated interaction of a number of developmentally harmful psychopathologies. Among these were: the unwavering refusal to acknowledge and address grave familial problems; a complete failure to discuss and contextualize the issue of racism while residing in a community known for its remarkable racial prejudice; a mutually destructive and hostile relationship between the family’s parents; the noteworthy anger that underlay much of the family’s disproportionate reactions to one another and to the outside world; verbal and physical abuse; and the father’s emotional abandonment of his children. {Id. at 31, ¶ 81.) Naomi and Frank married on January 4, 1958. (Id. at 42, ¶ 108.) Petitioner was born on March 10, 1962. (Id. at 44, ¶ 113.) He was placed with Naomi and Frank on May 17, 1962. (Id.) Petitioner was a hyperactive baby and small child. (Id. at 44, ¶ 113-14.) He had incredible energy. (Id. at 46, ¶ 117.) More than thirty years after petitioner left his preschool, petitioner’s former teacher described petitioner’s family as “troubled to an unforgettable degree.” (Id. at 50, ¶ 130 (internal quotation marks omitted).) Petitioner’s preschool teacher stated that petitioner was “overwhelmed by stimuli and by interactions with other children; extremely labile; unable to sit still, finish projects or move from one activity to another; unable to interpret the social cues of other children; socially isolated; unable to read and respond to other children in a way that allowed friendship to happen; prone to seeing the most benign gesture as a threat; and subject to extreme tantrums that were beyond those of a normal child and in which he entered his own world.” (Id. at 51, ¶ 131 (internal quotation marks omitted).) When petitioner was four and a half, his preschool teacher suggested that petitioner’s parents seek the help of a psychologist or psychiatrist. (Id. at 51, ¶ 131.) Petitioner’s father refused. (Id.) Naomi and Frank attempted to adopt another child in April 1966. (Id. at 53, ¶ 137.) The adoption agency notes reflect the problems petitioner’s family faced: The interviews revealed that Naomi had been candidly uncomfortable about the fact that Francis was an adopted child, that she was incapable of giving directions to her home, barely able to convey simple thoughts, and dependent on Frank to the extent that the adoption worker wondered what this young woman would do, or how she would respond in an emergency situation when her husband was not around.... The case worker wondered if there might be some neurological basis for Francis’s uncontrolled activity.... After an initial round of interviews, the adoption agency felt obliged to explore Naomi’s mental health. Later, during a home visit, Naomi was unable to control Francis and ended up crying and needing the consolation of the case worker. (Id. at 54, ¶ 139 (internal quotation marks omitted).) The case worker also described the family as living in social isolation. (Id. at 54, ¶ 140.) Naomi and Frank named petitioner's preschool teacher as a reference despite her earlier criticism of their parenting; she did not recommend them as suitable for adopting another child. (Id. at 54-55, ¶ 141.) The adoption agency referred the family for counseling. (Id. at 55, ¶ 142.) The counselor found petitioner to have a short attention span, excessive energy, a mind that was too active and an inability to differentiate between fantasy and reality. The psychologist recommended that petitioner undergo neurological testing, that Frank and Naomi receive marital counseling and that Naomi receive psychological help. (Id. at 56, ¶ 143.) Naomi, Frank and petitioner attended monthly counseling sessions for a while but did not complete the recommended six months. (Id. at 57, ¶ 145.) Ultimately, the adoption agency denied Naomi and Frank’s application to adopt another child and closed the case. (Id. at 58, ¶ 149.) One month after the denial of the application to adopt a second child, Naomi attempted suicide for the first time. She was hospitalized for several months and diagnosed with schizophrenia during that time. She was treated with Mellaril, which prevented her from functioning normally. (Id. at 54, ¶¶ 150-52.) Her family described her as a zombie who was flat in affect, moved in slow motion, dragged her feet and was like a walking dead person. (Id. at 60, ¶ 154.) She was suicidal upon her release from the hospital and fantasized about hanging herself. She attempted to overdose on sleeping pills. (Id. at 58, ¶ 155.) Naomi disciplined petitioner in unconventional ways. When petitioner acted up, Naomi sat on him until he calmed down. Naomi also forcibly administered enemas to petitioner as punishment. The purpose of the enemas was to keep petitioner clean and to calm him down when he was hyper. (Id. at 57, ¶ 146.) Frank disciplined petitioner by hitting him with a belt; Frank also gave petitioner boxing lessons when he was a school-aged child. (Id. at 58, ¶ 147.) Naomi continued to struggle with her mental health, especially when she stopped taking her medication. In one incident, Frank dropped Naomi off at her sister Barbara’s house. Barbara and her husband described Naomi’s behavior that night as “bizarre, terrifying, shocking, crazy as a person could be, psychotic, a nightmare, something from a scary movie, sad, frightening, [] horrible, a horror, gruesome and the kind of thing that any normal parent would protect his son from seeing.” (Id. at 65, ¶ 166.) After that night, Barbara would not allow her children to be alone with Naomi and they worried about what impact Naomi’s behavior would have on petitioner. (Id. at 66, ¶¶ 167-70.) Frank did not appear to protect petitioner from Naomi during these episodes. (Id. at 67, ¶¶ 171-72.) In another incident, Naomi threatened Frank’s mother with a knife. Naomi demanded that her mother-in-law kneel and pray. When her mother-in-law fled, Naomi chased her mother-in-law outside with the knife. (Id. at 67, ¶ 173.) By age ten, petitioner withdrew from home life and came home after dark. (Id. at 71, ¶ 185; 74 ¶ 190.) Petitioner’s friends describe his home as depressing, unhappy, awful, messy, dark and full of junk. (Id. at 71-73, ¶¶ 185-88.) Petitioner did not fit in with other children. He was isolated, frequently depressed and socially awkward. (Id. at 74-78, ¶¶ 191-2.) By thirteen, he was drinking beer daily and smoking marijuana many times a day. (Id. at 78, ¶ 202.) When petitioner was eleven, he broke into his school. (Id. at 79, ¶203.) At thirteen, he was caught with a marijuana pipe. He was declared a ward of the court at fourteen. (Id. at 79, ¶ 204.) Later that same year, Naomi suffered another psychotic episode. (Id. at 80, ¶ 206.) She was hospitalized for several months, during which she had sexual encounters with two male patients and said mass in the patient lounge. (Id. at 81, ¶ 206.) She started smoking and believed the devil was entering her body through cigarette smoke. (Id. at 79, ¶ 204.) Close in time to Naomi’s psychotic break, petitioner was suspended from school for fighting. Weeks later, petitioner arrived at school under the influence of marijuana and was suspended again. A month later, petitioner crashed his motorcycle that he had been driving daily, with his father’s permission, even though he was only fifteen and without a license. (Id. at 81, ¶ 207.) Naomi came home for several weeks after her hospitalization but ultimately left to live with her schizophrenic mother in Atascadero. Petitioner was fifteen. Naomi divorced Frank and never lived with him or Francis again. (Id. at 82, ¶ 208.) With Naomi gone and Frank largely absent or uninvolved, petitioner’s home became a hangout for drug dealers and users. (Id. at 82, ¶209.) People bought and sold drugs, including cocaine and marijuana. Petitioner had access to and was using PCP, cocaine, amphetamine, LSD, marijuana, hash, mushrooms, heroin and an array of pharmaceutical drugs. The house became even filthier and had broken windows that went unfixed. Frank did nothing to stop the things going on in his home; he blamed the neighbors’ complaints on racism. (Id. at 82-83, ¶ 209-11.) At age fifteen, petitioner began attending high school. Two months later, he crashed his motorcycle, resulting in x-rays of his ankle, tibia and fibula. He was sent to an alternative learning center. (Id. at 84, ¶ 212.) At sixteen, petitioner was arrested with two friends for malicious mischief. His friends were bailed out quickly, but it took several days for Frank to learn that petitioner was in jail. (Id. at 84, ¶ 213.) At seventeen, petitioner crashed his motorcycle again. He lost consciousness, suffered involuntary convulsions and was taken to the hospital by ambulance. He had x-rays of his skull, face, chest and arm. (Id. at 85, ¶ 215.) A month later, petitioner was arrested for breaking into a drug store. He was held in custody and sent to the California Youth Authority (“CYA”). While petitioner was incarcerated, Frank moved in with his girlfriend and sold his house. He bought petitioner a van to live in after his release. (Id. at 85, ¶¶ 215-16.) Petitioner was released in April 1980. (Id. at 86, ¶ 217.) He received his driver’s license the same day. (Id. at 87, ¶ 218.) In May 1980, he was cited for possession of marijuana and driving with an open container of alcohol. (Id. at 87, ¶ 218.) In July 1980, he received another traffic citation. (Id. at 87, ¶ 218.) Between April 1980 and February 1981, petitioner dated Heidi Williams. Heidi told petitioner she was pregnant with petitioner’s baby. Petitioner proposed to Heidi, and she accepted. Heidi told petitioner she miscarried. (Id. at 87, ¶ 219.) In December 1980, the police told petitioner that he could no longer keep his dog, Prince, in his van. (Id. at 87, ¶ 221.) Later that month, petitioner was pulled over for a traffic citation. There was a warrant for petitioner in connection with change stolen out of a parked car. The police impounded petitioner’s car, which was his home. It contained his clothing and possessions, as well as a large amount of marijuana that belonged to a drug dealer. (Id. at 88, ¶ 223.) In mid-January 1981, Heidi broke up with petitioner. On January 20, 1981, the DMV revoked petitioner’s license. In late January or early February 1981, petitioner ran his van into an apartment building. Around the same time, Edna Bristol and Kathy Ryan were murdered. (Id. at 89, ¶¶ 225-26.) From April 1980 until his arrest for the underlying crimes in 1981, [Petitioner] was an eighteen-year-old, unemployed, parolee who was homeless, isolated from his family, drug addicted and living in a van. Other than an uncertain relationship with a girlfriend and the continued association with a homeless, drug abusing friend, Francis had little social support or contact. He no longer shared a home with either of his parents. He was not in school. He was not incarcerated. He was not in any of the various forms of treatment that teachers, social workers, and mental health professionals had been urging for him since he was a toddler.... Francis was a young man with insufficient social and psychological resources attempting to grapple with unmanageable stressors. (Id. at 86, ¶ 217.) In addition to creating petitioner’s social history, Dr. Clausen also provided a psychological analysis. Dr. Clausen pointed to literature demonstrating that children raised by a schizophrenic parent tend to suffer from cognitive, behavioral, emotional and social difficulties. (Id. at 93-94, ¶ 235.) In addition, the key task during the first eighteen months of life is to form an attachment to the primary caretaker, but that process cannot take place with a psychotic primary caretaker. (Id. at 94, ¶ 236.) The failure to form a healthy primary attachment results in a consequent failure to develop basic trust. (Id.) Naomi failed to form an attachment bond to petitioner. (Id. at 95-96, ¶¶ 237-40.) From ages two to six, children should develop a sense of autonomy and initiative. Again, Naomi’s psychosis prevented petitioner from developing appropriately, leaving petitioner anxious, depressed, exposed to physical danger, prone to uncontrolled behavior and resorting to self-reliance and pseudo-maturity. (Id. at 96-100, ¶¶ 241-46.) Naomi and Frank’s inability to cope with petitioner’s normal attempts to develop independence and initiative-taking resulted in rage, beatings with a belt, yelling and the forcible administration of enemas. (Id. at 100-01, ¶¶ 247-48.) Naomi engaged in inappropriate play with petitioner, such as by tying him up with rope. She allowed petitioner to take dangerous items to school for play, including screwdrivers, other tools, wood, rope and toy guys. (Id. at 101, ¶¶249.) Dr. Clausen described petitioner as “a young child without a healthy self-concept who was not equipped with basic skills in social comprehension and interpersonal communication, and who did not understand the expectations and consequences in his environment.” (Id. at 103, ¶¶ 251.) From ages six to twelve, a child’s primary task is to develop a sense of industry. (Id. at 103, ¶252.) For petitioner, these years were filled with tension, chaos, violence, the deterioration of a psychotic mother and an often-absent father. (Id. at 104-07, ¶¶ 254-61.) To make up for his parents’ shortcomings, petitioner was charged with great responsibility, including learning how to turn off the power in case of an emergency at age five and learning how to drive a car at age 10. (Id. at 107, ¶ 262.) Petitioner developed symptoms of anxiety and depression. (Id. at 109, ¶ 264.) Petitioner started staying away from home as much as possible. (Id. at 109, ¶ 265.) During his elementary and pre-teen years, he had a great deal of freedom, no supervision, no chores and no family dinners or obligations. (Id. at 109, ¶ 266.) Petitioner began to self-medicate by using marijuana and alcohol on a regular basis in the summer after fifth grade and by getting drunk and high every day by seventh grade. (Id.) From ages twelve to eighteen, a child’s primary task is to develop a sense of personal identity. (Id. at 110, ¶267.) Petitioner used drugs regularly as an adolescent, with his parents’ knowledge; they did nothing about it and Naomi recalls that she may have smoked marijuana with her son. (Id. at 110, ¶ 268.) Naomi continued to suffer from schizophrenia and engaged in sexually inappropriate behavior, such as by having a man she met while hospitalized come to her home to have sex. (Id. at 112, ¶ 273.) Petitioner started acting out. He fought and used drugs at school and was arrested for burglary. (Id. at 113, ¶ 274.) Petitioner’s mother left the family without saying goodbye. (Id. at 113, ¶ 275.) With petitioner’s mother gone and his father rarely home, petitioner started using drugs and alcohol more regularly. (Id. at 113, ¶ 276.) The house petitioner and Frank lived in was filthy and in shambles. (Id. at 113-14, ¶ 277.) Petitioner was arrested for breaking into a drug store and then spent ten months in the CYA. (Id. at 114, ¶ 278.) Less than a year after his release, petitioner was arrested for the underlying crimes. (Id.) Petitioner also struggled to distinguish reality from fantasy: The evidence suggests that Francis’s genetic predisposition for impaired reality testing together with his chronic exposure to his adoptive mother’s psychotic thoughts and chaotic, disorganized behavior, and with his father’s paranoid thinking and minimization of his wife’s symptoms, resulted in a marked inability to accurately perceive his social environment. Francis grew up to be an adolescent who was confused by the signals he received from people around him and, when confused, experienced distortions of reality and, at times, became paranoid. (Id. at 117-18, ¶ 283.) In addition, petitioner dissociated as a way of coping with the world around him. Francis had a genetic predisposition to dissociative disorder, dissociated at various times during his childhood and experienced incredible stress in the weeks leading up to the crimes. (Id. at 118-19, ¶¶ 284-86; 121, ¶291.) Petitioner knows about many of the circumstances of the crime, but he cannot actually remember many of them. (Id. at. 119-21, ¶¶ 287-89.) Petitioner’s confession, despite the level of detail, contains evidence that petitioner dissociated during the crimes. (Id. at 122, ¶ 292; 123 ¶ 295.) The taped statement also suggests that petitioner’s thought processes were psychotic during the crimes. (Id. at 122, ¶ 294) Petitioner’s testimony at the penalty phase provides further evidence of dissociation. (Id. at 123-24, ¶ 296.) b. Psychiatrist Dorothy Otnow Lewis Dr. Lewis is a professor of psychiatry at New York University School of Medicine and a clinical professor at the Yale University Child Study Center. (Lewis 8/15/03 Decl. at 1, ¶ 2.) Dr. Lewis evaluated petitioner’s neuropsychiatric, medical and family background. She also considered how those factors may have affected petitioner’s conduct on the night of the crimes, including his capacity to form the specific intent to commit rape and murder. (Id. at 1, ¶ 1.) Dr. Lewis interviewed petitioner for three days in 1990 and two days in 2003. She interviewed petitioner’s adoptive mother, Naomi; adoptive father, Frank; biological mother and father; adoptive paternal aunt; and adoptive paternal uncle. She also reviewed the declarations of petitioner’s adoptive and biological relatives, as well as others. (Id. at 2, ¶ 3.) Dr. Lewis provided a detailed social history of petitioner, emphasizing the “biopsychosocial factors” that affected petitioner’s mental state at the time of the crimes. She explained her approach as follows: It is impossible to understand Francis Hernandez’s psychiatric condition throughout childhood and during adolescence, the development period at which time the offenses were committed, without a clear understanding of the interactions among his genetic vulnerabilities to severe mental illness which he inherited from his biological mother and father the effects of in útero exposure to alcohol and drugs, repeated head injuries beginning in early childhood, and an upbringing in a psychotic, physically ana sexually abusive, and severely neglectful adoptive family. (Id. at 4, ¶ 8.) Dr. Lewis considered the mental health of petitioner’s biological relatives, which included major depression and bipolar mood disorders. (Id. at 6-12, ¶¶ 11-30.) “[0]ne can trace psychiatric illness of psychotic proportions through three generations of Francis Hernandez’s paternal biological relatives as well as three generations of his maternal biological relatives.” (Id. at 12, ¶ 30.) Dr. Lewis also reviewed the psychiatric history of petitioner’s adoptive family. Naomi was raised by a “psychotic,” “violent, [ ] strict disciplinarian” who “harbored religious delusions (e.g. being raped and having her vagina probed by the Devil).” (Id. at 13, ¶ 33.) Ultimately, Naomi’s mother was diagnosed with chronic schizophrenia, paranoid type. (Id. at 14, ¶ 34.) Dr. Lewis concluded that “Naomi’s childhood experience of being raised by a violent, delusional mother undoubtedly influenced the psychotic manner in which she treated” petitioner. (Id. at 13, ¶ 33.) Naomi’s father was both “a depressed, unfeeling, verbally abusive man — a ‘hermit’ who isolated his wife and children from the rest of society” and simultaneously “a hard drinking man about town who infuriated his wife with his overspending and affairs with women.” (Id. at 13, ¶ 32.) Naomi was always considered different as a child: shy, withdrawn, unable to express herself, slow and possibly retarded, paranoid, confused, disoriented and unable to relate to others. While she was diagnosed with thyroid dysfunction as a teen, Dr. Lewis opines that these symptoms relate to Naomi’s developing psychosis. (Id. at 14, ¶ 36.) Naomi had difficulty coping as an adult. Her family and her in-laws described her as immature, incompetent and unable to cope with the demands of her life. (Id. at 14, ¶ 37.) Naomi attempted suicide when petitioner was 5; she was admitted to a psychiatric hospital for three months and diagnosed with schizophrenia. She was hospitalized in a psychiatric facility for four months when petitioner was seven and involuntarily committed again when petitioner was eight. Hospital records describe her as “agitated, confused, homicidal and delusional.” (Id. at 15, ¶ 39 (internal quotation marks omitted).) After Naomi’s first hospitalization, Frank removed all of the kitchen knives from the house. (Id. at 15-16, ¶ 39.) When medicated, Naomi could barely function. The house was dark and very disordered, and people described Naomi as weird or zombie-like. (Id. at 17, ¶ 42.) Naomi acted so bizarrely at times that her sister and brother-in-law never left their children alone with Naomi and feared for petitioner’s safety in his mother’s care. (Id. at 17, ¶ 41.) Naomi believed that petitioner was possessed by the devil; she gave him enemas to make him clean and to improve his behavior. (Id. at 18, ¶45.) Frank would help get control of petitioner and have him bend over the tub with his bottom in the air so that Naomi could insert the enema nozzle up petitioner’s rectum. Naomi would make petitioner hold the liquid as long as he could, up to fifteen minutes, before she would allow him to relieve himself. “This particular manifestation of Naomi’s psychosis is important because of its relevance to aspects of the offense in question (i.e. inserting objects into his victims’ bodily orifices).” (Id.) “Children who have had objects shoved into their rectums repeatedly against their will are at a high risk of perpetrating similar acts on others.” (Id.) Naomi also behaved in sexually inappropriate ways around petitioner, such as wanting to do a striptease in front of petitioner, dressing seductively and bringing home a former fellow patient, with whom she had sexual intercourse while hospitalized, at a time when petitioner may have been there. (Id. at 18, ¶ 46.) Frank believed that Naomi may have molested petitioner, noting that petitioner and his mother shared a bed when petitioner was nine and ten. (Id. at 18-19, ¶ 46.) Dr. Lewis described petitioner’s relationship with his adoptive mother as follows: The influence of [petitioner’s] mother’s sexually provocative, inappropriate behaviors, anally assaultive acts, and the emotional reaction they engendered in Francis, clearly contributed to the nature of ... the offenses. Children who have been repeatedly stimulated sexually and/or teased sexually by an adult, especially by a mother, are at a very high risk of acting out sexually and aggressively toward women other than their abusers ... [0]ne cannot overemphasize the effects on Francis, a psychiatrieally vulnerable child to begin with, of being raised by a chronically psychotic, sexually abusive mother. (Id. at 19, ¶ 46.) Since leaving petitioner and his father, Naomi has been hospitalized many times, often following suicide attempts. She has spent years in group homes and residential treatment homes, as well as some time homeless on the streets of San Francisco. (Id. at 17, ¶ 43.) Frank, petitioner’s adoptive father, was raised in a violent home in which the father drank to excess. (Id. at 19, ¶47.) Relatives and others describe Frank as quiet, withdrawn, socially isolated and oblivious to his surroundings, including Naomi and petitioner’s mental health problems. (Id. at 20, ¶ 49.) Frank also suffered from paranoia. (Id. at 20-22, ¶¶ 50-54.) He had grandiose opinions about petitioner’s capabilities, including buying petitioner a motorbike powerful enough for an adult at age five, allowing petitioner to back a van out of the driveway at age eight, to drive a car at age ten and to drive a motorcycle without a license as a teenager. (Id. at 22, ¶ 55.) Frank also abandoned petitioner. Frank expected petitioner to take care of his mother when he was just five years old. (Id. at 22, ¶ 56.) When Naomi left, Frank left fifteen-year-old petitioner to fend for himself, leaving food in the refrigerator or money on the table. (Id. at 23, ¶ 57.) Dr. Lewis also reviewed petitioner’s medical and psychiatric history. Petitioner experienced multiple events that are known to increase vulnerability to psychiatric illnesses, social and academic maladaption and violence, including his biological mother’s ingestion of alcohol and marijuana. (Id. at 23, ¶ 59.) Petitioner’s hyperactivity, his adoptive mother’s incompetence and his father’s poor judgment combined to put petitioner at great risk for injuring himself. (Id. at 23, ¶ 60.) Petitioner’s injuries included the following: riding a tricycle into an in-ground pool at age two; ingesting a bottle of baby aspirin around the same age; crashing a mini-bike into a wall at age five, requiring stitches to his chin; numerous bike and skateboard accidents during his elementary and middle school years that resulted in head injuries; eleven motorcycle accidents in his teens, including one on which his helmet was dented. (Id. at 24, ¶ 60.) These sorts of head injuries likely exacerbated the psychiatric symptoms of bipolar disorder. (Id. at 24, ¶ 61.) Dr. Lewis attributed petitioner’s early hyperactivity to any of the following: the drugs and alcohol to which petitioner was exposed in útero, early manifestations of mania that petitioner inherited from his episodically psychotic biological parents, the effects of inadequate mothering or a combination of all three. (Id. at 25, ¶ 63.) As a preschooler, petitioner engaged in psychotic behavior, including misperceiving reality, misreading social cues, attacking other children without provocation, bringing dangerous items to school, engaging in dangerous acts, being unable to switch from one activity to another without extreme distress and experiencing episodes of uncontrollable yelling and crying. (Id. at 26-27, ¶¶ 67-68.) Dr. Lewis described these behaviors as “characteristic of a traumatized child who is out of touch with reality” and “characteristic of severely psychiatrically ill young children who have witnessed and/or been victims of extreme, bizarre violence.” (Id. at 27, ¶¶ 67-68.) Moreover, these behaviors are also characteristic of dissociative children. (Id. at 27, ¶ 69.) Dr. Lewis explained that “Recurrently traumatized, dissociative children exhibit trancelike states, impaired memory for behaviors and events, and dramatic and instantaneous fluctuations in behavior.” (Id. at 28, ¶ 70.) “They often have aggressive overreactions in response to neutral stimuli because they are misperceived as threats.” (Id.) Due to petitioner’s bizarre behavior, the adoption agency referred five-year-old petitioner for a psychological evaluation. Joseph Sawaya observed that petitioner had endless energy; was restless and demanding; acted out, suffered from a short attention span; performed poorly on a test of central nervous system functioning, indicating possible brain impairment; was destructive and fantasized profusely. (Id. at 28-29, ¶ 72.) These observations and test results show that petitioner was psychotic and that “he was a danger to himself and others and desperately needed removal from his home and psychiatric hospitalization. Instead of hospitalizing and treating this frantic, very disturbed, five year old, however, Francis was allowed to remain in his psychotic adoptive home.” (Id. at 29, ¶ 73.) The physical condition of petitioner’s home added to petitioner’s problems. Dr. Lewis testified that “[n]o child raised in such an environment could be expected to develop normally. He or she would have no models for normal social interaction and no experiences of the kind of ongoing nurturing and cognitive stimulation that every human being requires for normal adaptation.” (Id. at 30, ¶ 76.) Petitioner’s struggles continued into adolescence. (Id. at 31, ¶ 78.) Petitioner was paranoid and experienced rapid, wild mood swings. (Id. at 32, ¶¶ 70, 78-79.) He also experienced trance-like states, unrelated to the use of drugs or alcohol. (Id. at 32-33, ¶ 80.) Petitioner’s rapid mood swings, trance-like states and strikingly different use of penmanship and spelling depending on mood suggest pathological dissociation, “characteristic of people who, as children, experienced severef,] ongoing, intolerable abuse, usually of sexual as well as physical and emotional in nature.” (Id. at 33, ¶ 81.) Dr. Lewis concluded that petitioner’s history with sudden self-injury, property damage, impaired memory and trance-like episodes related to the murder of Kathy Ryan. Petitioner intended to see her later in the week, and nothing indicated he intended to kill her on the night of the crime. The murder does not seem premeditated, but, rather, suggests that petitioner was in a dissociative state. (Id. at 33-34, ¶ 82.) Dr. Lewis also diagnoses petitioner with bipolar mood disorder. (Id. at 34-36, ¶ 84; see also 2 Lewis Depo. at 278 (“[W]hether you wish to call it the manic phase of bipolar mood disorder or the manic phase of Schizoaffective, schizophrenic disorder ... he was severely psychiatrically ill at the time ... and the psychotic nature of the illness was manifested in childhood, which tells you about the severity of the disorder.”).) No single factor accounts for petitioner’s behavior at the time of the crimes. (Lewis 8/15/03 Decl. at 36, ¶ 85.) A combination of several factors worked together, including that petitioner suffers from bipolar mood disorder and appeared to be in a manic or hypomanic state at the time of the offenses; petitioner’s struggle with dissociative symptoms, which include violent responses to misperceptions and impaired or distorted memory; multiple head injuries; and being raised by a psychotic mother and a paranoid father prone to physical aggression in an abusive home. (Id. at 36-37, ¶ 85.) Moreover, Francis Hernandez had [a] constellation ... of intrinsic neuropsyehiatrie vulnerabilities (i.e.[J bipolar mood disorder, pathological dissociation, history of numerous head injuries) and extreme intra-family stressors (i.e.[J an upbringing in a psychotic, physically and sexually abusive and severely neglectful household) which engendered his extreme[,] uncontrollable[,] violent acts. The knowledge of these biopsychosocial vulnerabilities and the appreciation of their role in Francis Hernandez’s offenses are vital to understanding his compromised mental functioning on the nights of the murder in question. (Id. at 37, ¶ 86.) In sum, petitioner’s “capacity to premeditate and deliberate[ and] his capacity to form the specific intent to rape and kill, was substantially impaired.” (Id. at 37, ¶ 87.) Moreover, Dr. Lewis opined that testimony about petitioner’s mental health could have provided helpful evidence at the penalty phase. The difference between the psychotic household in which petitioner was raised and the “minimally nurturing, stimulating and protective environment required for normal development and adaptation would have been powerful information to present during the mitigation phase of Francis’s trial.” (Id. at 30, ¶ 11.) Moreover, “[i]t is hard to imagine how a more genetically resilient child could have weathered the family environment and adapted appropriately to society, much less a child with Francis’s inherent vulnerabilities to mental illness.” (Id. at 31, ¶ 77; see also 2 Lewis Depo. at 283 (“[W]hen you get a vulnerable child who is then adopted into or raised in a psychotic environment in which you don’t know what your mother or your father will be like and in which there are such stressors ... then you are creating an aberrant human being, a person who cannot function the way other people do.”).) c. Criminologist Sheila Balkan Criminologist Sheila Balkan obtained her doctorate in sociology, with a specialization in criminology, deviant behavior and mental health. (Balkan 8/15/03 Decl. at 1, ¶ 2.) The stated purpose of her declaration is to provide a social history of petitioner and identify the issues in his life and background that help explain the crime. (Id. at 1-2, ¶4.) Dr. Balkan reviewed the trial testimony of Drs. Rayyes, Girsh and Maloney. (Id. at 2, ¶ 6.) She also reviewed the findings of Dr. Lewis, including Dr. Lewis’s 1990 assessment of petitioner and her 2003 declaration. (Id. at 2, ¶ 4.) Dr. Balkan conducted interviews of petitioner, his former girlfriend, his childhood friend Morris Silverstein and the mother of childhood friend Douglas “Eddie” Duffey. (Id. at 4, ¶ 9.) Dr. Balkan also reviewed declarations, notes of interviews or both for many individuals, including petitioner’s biological parents and other biological relatives, his adoptive parents, other members of his adoptive family, petitioner’s preschool teacher and the parents of petitioner’s former girlfriend, among others. (Id.) Dr. Balkan reviewed exten