Phillip Adams had Stage 2 CTE when he killed 6 in South Carolina

Описание: Phillip Adams, a former NFL player accused of killing six people in a mass shooting in Rock Hill before taking his own life in early April, showed signs of severe brain damage caused by CTE, a researcher from Boston University said Tuesday.

Dr. Ann McKee, a neuropathologist and expert on neurogenerative diseases at Boston University, said Adams had severe CTE in both frontal lobes of his brain. Dr. Sabrina Gast, the York County coroner, said Adams' family told officials he had complained of excruciating pain, memory issues and difficulty sleeping late in life.

"His 20-year career put him at high risk for development of CTE," McKee, who conducted the study on Adams' brain, said. "It's a progressive disease that worsens with age. In many instances, it is a disease of the young."

Police say Adams shot and killed Robert Lesslie, 70, his wife Barbara Lesslie, 69, and two of their grandchildren, Adah, 9, and Noah, 5, as well as two HVAC workers, James Lewis, 38, and Robert Shook, 38 on April 7 in Rock Hill.

Police say Adams took his own life as officers were closing in on him. Adams was from Rock Hill. He played in the NFL six years, most recently with the Atlanta Falcons, until the 2015 season. He had several documented injuries in his career.

McKee went on to say that Boston University has diagnosed CTE in 700 individuals, including 315 former NFL players. She said that of 24 former NFL players who died in their 20s and 30s, most of them had Stage 2 CTE. McKee compared Adams' CTE pathology to that of former NFL player Aaron Hernandez, who was diagnosed with CTE after his death in 2017.

"Mr. Adams' CTE pathology was different than the other young NFL players with CTE," McKee said. "It was different in that it was unusually severe in both frontal lobes."

McKee said Stage 2 CTE is associated with aggression, impulsivity, depression, paranoia, anxiety, poor executive function and memory loss. She said Adams' 20-year football career undoubtedly contributed to CTE.

"We have seen this behavior. We have even seen homicidal behavior in individuals diagnosed with CTE. It is difficult to say that it alone resulted in these behaviors because usually, it's a complicated issue with many other factors," McKee said. "It is in fact, not what I would consider unusual in this disease."

A representative for Adams' family said he was "desperately seeking help" from the NFL but was denied all of his claims because he had trouble remembering things and struggled to complete simple tasks, such as traveling to visit doctors and undergo extensive testing.

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