Doctor accepted limousine ride, dinner from 'manic' Richard Bain
Physician admits under cross-examination that he described Bain's depression as 'benign'
Richard Bain's physician said he felt comfortable gambling with and being treated to dinner by his patient, whom he suspected was "manic" and obsessed with the end of the world.
Dr. Stan van Duyse, a Westmount-based physician, told the jury at the Montreal courthouse he's been Bain's family doctor since the late 90s.
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Bain is on trial for the first-degree murder of Denis Blanchette, a lighting technician who was shot and killed outside the Parti Québécois victory party on election night, Sept. 4, 2012.
The defence is arguing Bain is not criminally-responsible because of a mental disorder. The prosecution contends that the shooting was premeditated and politically motivated.
Van Duyse was called by the defence to testify about Bain's depression and anxiety, as well as his symptoms of manic behaviour.
But under the rapid-fire cross-examination of prosecutor Dennis Galiatsatos, van Duyse admitted that his concerns about his patient didn't stop them from going out to dinner together.
"So he was your patient that you suspected might be manic, and you were comfortable with him treating you to dinner at Milos?" Galiatsatos asked, referencing the high-end Greek restaurant in Montreal.
"I guess I did feel comfortable," van Duyse answered.
The prosecutor reminded the doctor of a conversation he once had with the Crown's psychiatrist, during which he described Bain's depression as "situational, related to his work and girlfriend ...[and] rather benign."
Van Duyse admitted that was true.
'Doctor-patient barrier'
The doctor also testified that he felt comfortable accepting a $600 limousine ride to the countryside — paid for by Bain — because he understood he would be treating celebrities Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas.
In fact, the patient turned out to be the wife of the owner of a ranch Bain had a financial interest in.
When Galiatsatos asked if the doctor considered Bain his friend, the doctor replied, "That's a loaded question."
He told the court that he thought there "was always a doctor-patient barrier" that he respected. However, he acknowledged that, over time, there was a "penchant towards an amicable relationship."
Feels 'badly' he didn't send him to a psychiatrist
The court also heard on Tuesday that Bain's physician never referred him to a psychiatrist, despite noting his manic state.
"I thought I had a handle on it," van Duyse told the court.
Van Duyse said, in hindsight, he feels "badly" he didn't do more.
He said he tried to reason with Bain at times, who thought "this was the end of the world," but told the court that his patient "didn't want to hear from me."
"I thought that I had a good enough relationship with the patient to handle that. Had it gotten worse, I would've sent him to a psychiatrist," he said.
Bain doubled meds without permission
Van Duyse told the jury he had been treating Bain for depression since 1995 and the type of antidepressant he prescribed changed over the years.
The doctor said his patient started taking Cymbalta as far back as April 2009.
Earlier in the trial, Bain blamed an overdose of Cymbalta for his actions the night of the shooting. Family members have also testified that Bain seemed to become a different person while taking the drug.
Van Duyse told the jury that during a November 2009 consultation, he found out that Bain had broken up with his girlfriend of 20 years and had been doubling his dosage of Cymbalta without his permission.
Van Duyse testified that he switched Bain to another antidepressant.
Earlier in the trial, Bain testified that he continued taking Cymbalta after his doctor ordered him to switch to Effexor.
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