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Psychiatrist:
Uyesugi feared he’d
use his guns on
co-workers

Xerox officials knew he had
guns and might act on his
threats, the doctor said

COMING UP

By Debra Barayuga
and Suzanne Tswei
Star-Bulletin

Byran Uyesugi did not carry his guns because he feared he might use them against other Xerox employees, said a psychiatrist who evaluated the copy machine repairman in 1993.

Dr. Denis Mee-Lee, director of psychiatric programs at Castle Hospital, took the stand yesterday in the second week of the trial for Uyesugi, who is charged with gunning down seven co-workers at the Xerox warehouse last November.

Mee-Lee evaluated Uyesugi at the request of Xerox officials because they were concerned about threats he allegedly had made against co-workers and his violent outbursts, including one on Sept. 21, in which he had kicked in an elevator door in a fit of anger.

Xerox officials told Uyesugi he would be fired if he did not seek professional help, Mee-Lee said.

Company officials "knew he had a gun collection and therefore they were very concerned about him carrying out his threats," Mee-Lee said.

Mee-Lee diagnosed Uyesugi as suffering from delusions and paranoia where he believed people were out to get him.

Associated Press
Dr. Denis Mee-Lee testified he thought Byran Uyesugi
could function with outpatient therapy after
his 1993 evaluation .

After five days at Castle, Mee-Lee felt outpatient treatment at Kaiser was appropriate.

Without treatment, a delusional disorder worsens or remains about the same, Mee-Lee said. However, a person suffering delusional disorder can function in other aspects of his life, he said.

Kaiser psychiatrist Marvin Mathews also didn't feel Uyesugi posed a danger to others and recommended he return to work after seeing him only twice for therapy.

He last saw Uyesugi on Jan. 31, 1994, to check on his progress. That visit turned out to be Uyesugi's last.

During his sessions with Mathews, Uyesugi continued to maintain he didn't threaten anyone, promised he would not make trouble and was capable of doing his job.

Mathews felt Uyesugi still needed further evaluation and treatment. "But I don't feel he presented imminent danger at work," Mathews testified.

Uyesugi described his job to Mathews as stressful, saying his boss, co-workers and he himself were constantly pushing him to work faster.

When asked about incidents at work, he said his employers were "overreacting."

He denied making the threats and said he didn't think about doing harm to anyone.

"I just do my job," Mathews quoted him as saying.

Uyesugi's troubles at work appeared to have begun after his mother died two years earlier, Xerox manager Donald Lee told Mathews.

Uyesugi wanted it kept quiet but someone from Xerox sent flowers, and that apparently alienated him, Mathews said.

Otherwise, Uyesugi was generally a good employee who functioned well, except during a job performance review, Lee told Mathews.

Uyesugi had refused to sign a performance appraisal because he believed co-workers were tampering with his parts, resulting in his machines breaking down prematurely.

The sabotage, he felt, occurred when co-workers worked on his machines.

Uyesugi truly did feel, however, that co-workers were spying on him or sabotaging his work.

And those delusions "focused exclusively" on his work group, Mathews said.

Mathews had recommended a treatment plan that would require further psychotherapy sessions.

COMING UP Today: Recess Tomorrow: Three doctors appointed by the court to independently examine Byran Uyesugi will testify. Also expected to take the stand is Xerox co-worker Steven Matsuda, who was shot at as he fled down a staircase, and Dr. Kanthi von Guenthner, first deputy medical examiner, who conducted autopsies on the remaining four victims. Thursday: The defense will call Hiro Uyesugi and Dennis Uyesugi, Uyesugi's father and brother, respectively. Also expected to testify are Rev. Clarence Higa, who blessed the Uyesugi's home on Easy Street; Donald Lee, retired Xerox employee who was Melvin Lee's boss; and James Hughes, Western security regional manager for Xerox who conducted his own investigation into Uyesugi's allegations. Hughes' investigation led to a meeting with the Xerox crisis response team that resulted in Uyesugi being admitted to Castle Hospital.