Psychiatrists submit report on Norway gunman's mental state

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Psychiatrists submitted a report to the Oslo court on Tuesday on the mental state of the gunman who killed 77 people in twin attacks in Norway in July, but their conclusions were not immediately disclosed.

If the two experts deem that 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik was sane and in control of his actions, the right-wing extremist risks a long prison sentence.

If not, he will be sentenced to psychiatric care.

One of the psychiatrists, Torgeir Husby, said as he dropped off the report at the courthouse that the evaluation presented a clear assessment of Behring Breivik's mental state.

"We have no doubt when it comes to our conclusions," he told hordes of reporters.

The prosecutor's office is scheduled to present the main outlines of the 240-page report at a press conference at 1:00 pm (1200 GMT) Tuesday.

Meanwhile, a social welfare inquiry into Anders Behring Breivik's family situation conducted 28 years ago when he was four years old hinted he may have been sexually abused, Norwegian public broadcaster NRK said quoting two independent sources.

That evaluation has no connection to the report submitted Tuesday.

Behring Breivik is currently being held in a high-security prison near Oslo. His trial is scheduled to open on April 16, 2012 and last for about 10 weeks.

The maximum prison sentence under Norwegian law for the type of attacks committed by Behring Breivik is 21 years, but he could stay behind bars longer if he is still considered a threat to society.

On July 22, Behring Breivik first set off a car bomb outside the government buildings in Oslo that house the offices of Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, killing eight people.

After that, he went to the island of Utoeya, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) northwest of Oslo, where, disguised as a police officer, he spent nearly an hour and a half methodically killing another 69 people, most of them teenagers.

Although he has confessed to the facts, Behring Breivik has refused to plead guilty, insisting his actions were "atrocious but necessary."

He has claimed to have been on a crusade against multiculturalism and the "Muslim invasion" of Europe.