Prosecutors Cast Doubt On Orville Fleming's Zombie Defense In Murder Case

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Prosecutors cross-examined a former Cal Fire chief on Wednesday who said he doesn't remember anything after he started stabbing his girlfriend to death.

Before Orville Fleming took the stand again, a defense psychologist testified that he believes the former Cal Fire chief suffered an episode of something called dissociative amnesia, some nicknaming it a zombie defense.

The psychologist says Fleming's claims he doesn't remember much of the incident is because he slipped into a mental state where he may not have been thinking consciously. In theory, that could help prove that the killing of Douglas was a fit of rage, and in turn may be manslaughter instead of murder.

Prosecutors answered back saying there is no proof that Fleming is not lying, and replayed some of Fleming's confession to detectives when he was arrested. He told them after he got the knife and walked into the bedroom, "She said I didn't have the balls, 'You're a piece of s---, and I stabbed her."

Legal expert Daniel Horowitz has been sitting in on the trial and said the lengthy, detailed confession to detectives will be hard to overcome.

"There are two key issues: One, his statement to the police, that we just heard when he said 'That's when I made the conscious decision to get the knife,'" He said. "Right there he is confessing to first degree premeditated murder. The second difficulty that' he's got is that he strangled her; there's no dispute about that, and it takes minutes to strangle somebody to death."

If jurors believed Fleming was provoked and acted in a fit of rage, a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter would bring with it a maximum sentence of 11 years, while murder provides a possible life sentence.