Norway Killer in court today.

Norway's Anders Behring Breivik has made his first public appearance in court today.


Journalist Anne Leer said Anders Breivik had no problems looking straight at the survivors of the massacre

The man who confessed to killing 77 people in Norway in July has made his first public appearance in court.

Anders Behring Breivik, dressed in a dark suit, appeared in court in Oslo before survivors of the attacks, relatives of his victims and reporters.

The 32-year-old right-wing extremist has been in custody since the 22 July attacks in Oslo and at a youth camp on the island of Utoeya.

Previous hearings on his continued detention have been held in private.
'Calm and professional'

Journalist Anne Leer who was in the courtroom said the atmosphere had been tense and strange.

About 30 survivors and relatives of the victims attended the hearing, and the defendant looked them straight in the eye when he entered, she said.

She said Breivik appeared very calm and professional, but was stopped by the judge as he attempted to read out a prepared statement.

Breivik has admitted to the July killings but denies criminal responsibility - saying the massacre was "necessary" to save Norway and Europe from Muslims and multiculturalism.

In the days after the attacks, in which 151 people were also injured, he had reportedly been hoping to explain his actions at a court hearing.

But although an open hearing was initially ordered, the decision was later overruled by a higher court after police appealed against it.

A police request that Breivik address his remand hearings via a video link from prison was rejected by Norway's supreme court on Friday, allowing his court appearances to be held in public.

The judge in Monday's hearing remanded Breivik in custody for a further 12 weeks but relaxed the conditions of his solitary confinement, Ms Leer said.

Breivik has admitted that, disguised as a police officer, he planted a car bomb that exploded close to government offices, killing eight people.

He then drove to the island of Utoeya where the ruling Labour Party's youth movement was hosting a summer camp.

In a shooting spree that lasted more than an hour, he killed 69 people - mostly teenagers.

The attacks have traumatised Norway, which is seen as one of the most politically stable and tolerant countries in Europe.

77 has to be one of the biggest gun rampages ever and also one of the first where the gunman didnt turn the gun on himself.

Mores the pity.

77? fuck me.

i don't like the way it says that he appeared in court in a dark suit, as if that makes him more EVIL. i'd imagine a white suit, or something a bit more vibrant might be considered a bit too jovial for court.

or maybe that's just me......

i frown upon hearty conviviality.

He wore the dark suit just in case people didnt take him seriously.

daecentskin wrote:He wore the dark suit just in case people didnt take him seriously.

seriously though, why is the darkness of his suit a point of interest for these people?

Waspface wrote:

daecentskin wrote:He wore the dark suit just in case people didnt take him seriously.

seriously though, why is the darkness of his suit a point of interest for these people?

Maybe the fact that he looks like a normal person?
I'm not sure really. I do know that their is a section of people semi obsessed by serial killers and everything to do with them so maybe thats who they are pandering to. The same reporters were probably rushed from the Michael Jackson's doctors case to cover this. Its got a similar sensationalist air surrounding it.

By the way he admits killing the people but denies murder so there will be a trial which will probably have a certain circus element to it.
I feel sorry for all the families involved.

Court-appointed psychiatrists have concluded that Norwegian mass killer Anders Behring Breivik is criminally insane, a prosecutor said today, meaning he may be committed to a psychiatric institution indefinitely rather than sent to jail.

Breivik (32) killed 77 people in July by bombing central Oslo and then gunning down dozens of mostly teenagers at a summer camp for the ruling Labour Party's youth wing.

"The conclusion is ... is that he is insane," prosecutor Svein Holden told a news conference. "He lives in his own delusional universe and his thoughts and acts are governed by this universe."

If the court accepts the psychiatrists' conclusions, the anti-immigration militant could be held as long as he poses a threat to society and may be released if found to be healthy.

Norwegian courts can challenge psychiatric evaluations or order new tests but it is rare for them to reject such a professional opinion.

If the evaluation is upheld, Breivik would not be put on criminal trial but would face a court hearing to rule on his criminal insanity and the length of his commitment to a psychiatric institution.

Breivik could then face similar hearings periodically to determine if he needs to remain committed, and could be held for life if he remained a threat.

Mr Holden said Breivik had developed paranoid schizophrenia and was psychotic at the time of the attacks, and that his condition was persisting.

Breivik has confessed to carrying out the attacks but denies criminal guilt, saying he is a commander of a Norwegian resistance movement opposed to multiculturalism.

He is obviously deranged and belongs in the funny farm but the idea that he could be 'cured' and released in the future makes me and probably most of Norway want to see him tried as a criminal and locked up for life.