Thread: MI: Patient who killed found not guilty by reason of insanit

Patient who killed found not guilty by reason of insanity

Of The Oakland Press
The undocumented immigrant who snapped inside a Royal Oak hospital and killed an elderly West Bloomfield Township woman by throwing billiard balls was found not guilty by reason of insanity Wednesday.
Alejandro Guzman-Amezola, 33, an illegal from Mexico, will be evaluated at the state's Center for Forensic Psychiatry in the next two months before a probate judge determines what to do with him.

He likely would be placed in a psychiatric institution.

Oakland County Circuit Judge Edward Sosnick found Guzman-Amezola, of Detroit, not guilty of second-degree murder after receiving reports from three doctors who said the construction worker was "mentally ill" and "lacked the capacity to appreciate ... the wrongness of his conduct."

"This is a real tragedy," Sosnick said in closing the hearing.

On Feb. 27, one day after he voluntarily admitted himself to the psychiatric unit of William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Guzman-Amezola unexpectedly flew into a rage and started throwing billiard balls in the unit's day room.

Phyllis Madgy, 76, of West Bloomfield Township was a hospital patient, and she died about a month later from head injuries suffered during the rampage.

Guzman-Amezola committed himself when his family became concerned about his depression and anxiety following a confrontation with his employer and a brother, Assistant Oakland County Prosecutor Brett Chudler said.

A doctor had prescribed medication, and Guzman-Amezola had shown no signs of being agitated at the hospital, which only accepts voluntary commitments of patients in stable condition, Chudler said. He had been cooperative and communicative.

The day of the attack, however, "He suddenly became enraged and violent," Chudler said.

The attack left four other people injured, including hospital staff who had tried to remove Madgy from the day room. The room, which had three walls made mostly of windows, had shattered glass from the extensive damage.

While in court, Guzman-Amezola had an interpreter explain legal issues, although Chudler said the immigrant speaks "pretty good" English. At the hospital, Spanish-speaking staff spoke with Guzman-Amezola.

Madgy, who was in a wheelchair in the hospital, was struck twice, breaking her jaw and causing a skull fracture. Though she had been in poor health, the Oakland County Medical Examiner ruled the pool ball attack had caused her death - making it a homicide case.

Three doctors - one working for the state and one each hired by the prosecutor and defense attorney Ronald Chapman - all agreed that Guzman-Amezola lacked criminal responsibility.

"Everyone is in agreement that he is psychotic," Chudler said.

Doctors, however, are not sure what caused the psychosis.

"There is a lack of history available to doctors, which would make it easier to identify what mental illness he suffers from," Chudler said.

There also is a legal hold on him by immigration officials, meaning if he were released he could immediately be deported.

"He has been twice removed from this country and was still living here," Chudler said. "This man has been living in the states for years, raising a family for years."

A daughter of Madgy declined to comment after the hearing.

Contact staff writer Stephen Frye at (24 745-4634 or steve.frye@oakpress.com.
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There is a huge mental illness problem here...they are all nuts.

I would like to hear someone from that industry compute the costs to the U.S. for housing this 33 year old man in a hospital. It appears that his confinement is indefinite. Also, there will probably be a lawsuit for wrongful death filed against the facility on behalf of the 76 year old woman.