The Loeb-Leopold case - The Clarence Darrow Collection

The Loeb-Leopold Case
a more or less serious nature. He also projected the
phantasy into the world of reality in the ride in the
police car. He told the reporters on that occasion
that he always wanted to ride in a Marmon, and this
was his opportunity. Of course, the Marmon meant
the police car. He lived out his phantasies by his
life in the jail; his satisfaction in the jail life and his
evident happiness that was described by all the
alienists for the defense. That is one thing; all
these things I put under one.
Now, they also discovered his criminalistic ten-
dencies, or activity; the lying and boastfulness, the
fainting spells, his infantile and twisted emotional
development, making possible a consideration of his
own brother and father as possible victims of kid-
naping. His pathological desire for sympathy, his
pathological desire for power. All these things a
real examination disclosed.
More. The commission of crimes in order to
have the feeling of superior knowledge over every
one — you will remember that in the evidence
—
and mixing with a crowd to enjoy their evident con-
fusion and ignorance.
The interest in the palpitation of his heart. His
heart beat faster when he was engaged in some
criminalistic enterprise.
He had an inferiority feeling. From early boyhood
he had no opportunity to adjust himself and
his emotions to real life.
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