Born to be a murderer

2009/11/14 Galarraga Aiestaran, Ana - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Genetika
• Etika

On March 10, 2007, Bayout killed Walter Felipe Novoa. The latter acknowledged that Novoa insulted him because he had his eyes painted with KOHL. Bayout explained that he painted by religion and killed in the debate.

At the trial, the lawyer stated that Bayout had a confused head at the time of the murder and asked for consideration when imposing the penalty. The judge, Paolo Alessio Verníz, after consulting with three psychiatrists, accepted the lawyer's request and imposed a penalty of 9 years and 2 months, that is, 3 years less than he would have determined to have his head well.

But it wasn't there. In May of this year, a judge from Trieste, Pier Valerio Reinotti, asked for a new psychiatric report to be issued to see if there was a possibility to further attenuate the penalty.

This second report was produced by two neurologists, Pietro Pietrini and Giuseppe Sartori, who claim that Bayout's genes led to aggressive behavior after the outbreak. One of these genes was the gene of the neurotransmitter MAOA, which is also associated by other researchers with violent behavior.

The idea that genes command how the person is called genetic determinism. The power of genes is clear in some cases: People with three copies instead of two of chromosome 21 have Down syndrome. It is also evident in hereditary or commutative diseases, and the presence of blue eyes or dark skin in the genes... But is people's behavior always dependent on genes? For determinists yes.

And Judge Pier Paolo Reinotti also believes it, at least in the case of Bayout and based on the report of neurologists. For this reason, he shortened the penalty for a year. However, not everyone agrees with the decision, either on the street or among scientists.

The absolute power of genes, in doubt

The scientific journal Nature has consulted the geneticist and forensic scientist Giuseppe Novelli and has stated that MAOA tests are useless and expensive. As he explained, studies on the influence of the MAOA gene have shown that the influence varies greatly according to ethnicity. Pietrini and Sartori disregarded this aspect.

Pietrini replied to Natura that the MAOA gene was just a gene. And scientists also associate other genes with aggressive behavior, such as the serotonin carrier. But their influence is not always the same in all people, but depends on environmental factors. And while it is increasingly known how genes and the environment influence behavior, there are still many aspects to be clarified.

Family history and twin studies, for example, confirm the relationship between inherited genes, media and violence, according to geneticist Terrie Moffitt in Nature. But he has also said more: "What we know about our family history does not reduce our responsibility in decision-making."

Another geneticist, Steve Jones, further explains: "90% of the killers have Y chromosome (that is, they are men). So do you have to apply minor penalties to those with Y chromosomes?"

Published in Gara