Fingers are being pointed at a Queens psychiatrist who allowed David Tarloff to be released 10 days before he killed an Upper East Side psychologist and attacked another. Tarloff had been arrested after assaulting a security guard at St. John's Episcopal Hospital, and police say Dr. Reddy Bezwada's evaluation read, "The individual does not require further psychiatric treatment at this time."
Based on Bezwada's report, a Queens judge allowed Tarloff to be released on his own recognizance the day next day. A week and a half later, he slashed Dr. Kathryn Faughey to death with a meat cleaver and another knife while slashing Dr. Kent Shinbach. (It's believed he was targeting Shinbach in the attack, as Shinbach had diagnosed Tarloff's schizophrenia and helped his family commit him 17 years ago.) The Daily News notes that Tarloff's previous arrests were not on file while the Post says there were two other options for Bezwada to check off: That Tarloff required "further psychiatric care" but not hospitalization or that he did pose an "imminent danger to self and others."
The NY Times spoke with Tarloff's father Leonard and brother Robert, who described how David spiraled into mental illness. Leonard Tarloff said that his son would take his medication for schizophrenia long enough to feel "feel better and then say to himself, ‘I feel good. There’s nothing wrong,’ and stop taking his medications.” He mentioned his son was currently "very lethargic" and "in a fog" at Bellevue and lamented, “We’ve done everything we could have thought of. My son’s life was over 20 years ago when this first struck.”
