Do the Wieambilla attackers’ delusions complicate its classification as a terrorist attack?

One of the surprises on the first day of the Wieambilla inquest was the suggestion that the three killers may have been suffering from shared delusions.

Counsel assisting, Ruth O’Gorman, introduced the idea when previewing the testimony of a forensic clinical psychologist.

“Dr Andrew Aboud is likely to give evidence that … Gareth, Stacey and Nathaniel were experiencing symptoms of an uncommon shared psychotic disorder known as “folie á trois” whereby they had identical persecutory and religious beliefs that met the psychiatric definitions for delusions,” she said.