ORLANDO, Fla. – The defense rested its case Tuesday in the Michael Hernandez murder trial.
Hernandez decided not to take the stand in his own defense.
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Prosecutors have now called their first rebuttal witness to the stand.
Dr. Jon Shaw, a child psychiatrist who was once appointed by the court to assess Hernandez, offered testimony that shot down the defense?s argument that the teen is a paranoid schizophrenic.
?Some people have suggested he was schizophrenic, but there?s absolutely no evidence whatsoever that he was schizophrenic if you look at what the criteria are," Shaw said.
The trial, now in its third week, is playing out in an Orlando courtroom after attorneys argued they could not find a pool of Miami-Dade jurors that had not heard about the high-profile case.
Hernandez, now 18, is on trial for the murder of classmate Jaime Gough. The Southwood Middle School student was found stabbed to death in a school bathroom stall back in February 2004.
?It was clearly evidenced that there were some changes in his behavior at home," Shaw said. "I think as part of his rigorous training program to become a serial killer, he made a conscious decision to try and socially isolate himself, to diminish his relationships with people outside the family."
Defense attorneys are hoping for a not guilty verdict by reason of insanity because they believe Hernandez was legally insane when he carried out the killing. Prosecutors believe the teen is guilty of first-degree murder.
The outcome of the trial will be based on how jurors perceive Hernande'z mental state. The latest expert to take the stand believes Hernandez suffers from a personality disorder rather than a psychotic state of mind, even though Hernandez fantasized about carrying out multiple killings.
"He told me several times, 'I could stop being a serial killer, but then my life would be meaningless,'" Shaw said.
If Hernandez is found guilty, he could spend the rest of his life behind bars.