LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Gavin Perkins, who has repeatedly been ruled not competent to stand trial for the 2018 murder of his mother, will remain in jail on a $500,000 cash bond and again be psychologically tested.
After being re-indicted for the five-year-old murder in June, Perkins’ request Monday to lower his bond to $5,000 cash and home incarceration was rejected by Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Patricia Morris.
Perkins has been incarcerated or in a psychiatric hospital since he allegedly shot and killed his 69-year-old mother in April 2018 at an east Louisville apartment complex.
His attorney, Sheila Seadler, told the judge that Perkins has no history of criminal convictions, has been cooperative with treatment, is not a flight risk or danger to the community.
“He does not present a danger due to the fact that he is cooperative with his medication,” Seadler said. She also said Perkins is unable to get some of his treatment while lodged in Metro Corrections.
While Perkins has no money, he has friends who may be able to post the $5,000, Seadler said.
But Assistant Attorney General Ramsey Dallam said the current bond was appropriate given the seriousness of the charge, and that Perkins was getting medication while in jail for delusional disorder, which could not be guaranteed if released.
“The defendant is not only a danger to the public but to himself as well,” Dallam said, noting he was in the military and had an “arsenal” of firearms when he was arrested. And he has failed to appear for court in the past and has indicated he wants to leave Kentucky, she said.
Judge Morris agreed with the prosecution and ordered Perkins to be kept in Metro Corrections on a $500,000 cash bond.
“I think there’s some issues on the health front that’s concerning to this court should he be released,” she said. “I do not think the current bond set … is unreasonable considering again the serious nature of this crime."
Seadler also argued Monday that Perkins has already been repeatedly ruled incompetent and experts have testified he is unable to regain competency. She asked the the judge use previous evaluations to decided competency.
“I don’t think further evaluation is necessary,” she said. “There is nothing to indicate circumstances have changed” and delusional disorder is not something that will go away.
But Judge Morris ordered a new evaluation, ruling circumstances have changed since his last evaluation.
Perkins' next hearing is scheduled for Aug. 28.
He has been incarcerated or in a psychiatric hospital since he allegedly shot his mother more than 10 times at an east Louisville apartment complex.
His case has attracted widespread criticism and interest in recent months as it appeared that not only would he not stand trial for the alleged murder but be released after Central State Hospital officials testified in April they could no longer keep him in custody.
A judge sided with Central State, which said Perkins wasn't benefiting from treatment and the facility could no longer continue to hold him under Kentucky law.
However, Perkins remained hospitalized by his own choice, according to people familiar with the case.
Attorney General Daniel Cameron's office indicted Perkins on the same murder, in part because he could leave the hospital at any time.
The family of Perkins' mother, Ruth, as well as Gov. Andy Beshear had pushed for Cameron's office to take up the case, as they believe he is still a danger.
The case has been compared to that of Cane Madden, a Louisville man who continued to commit crimes, be found incompetent to stand trial but also failed to meet the criteria for involuntary hospitalization, over and over for several years.
Most recently, Madden was charged with the August 2019 beating and rape of a Louisville child until he was found mentally incompetent to stand trial on March 11, 2020.
In multiple instances in the past, Madden has been found incompetent and failed to meet this mental health criteria — meaning he repeatedly walked free — dodging both incarceration and mental health treatment. In Madden's case, psychiatrist ruled treatment would not help Madden.
On April 1, 2021, Beshear signed a bill into law that patched that gap in state law.
Under the new law, a defendant found incompetent has an evidentiary hearing, in front of a judge, to determine if there is a probability the person committed the crime. The defendant will have an attorney for this hearing.
If a judge finds there is a preponderance of evidence of guilt, there will be another hearing to determine whether it is in the best interest of the defendant and the community for the person to be involuntarily hospitalized using four new criteria, such as whether the person was a danger to self or others.
If the defendant is hospitalized, a judge would periodically review the status of the person.
But that law was meant for defendants with multiple crimes.
Perkins' record is clear outside of the murder charge, and it is unclear if prosecutors could use the law since his crimes occurred before it was passed.
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