Prosecutor asks that Louisville man accused of killing mom remain hospitalized

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Commonwealth's Attorney's Office filed a petition Thursday in an effort to keep a man accused of killing his mother off of Louisville's streets.

Prosecutors believe 44-year-old Gavin Perkins shot his mother, Ruth Perkins, to death in April 2018. He was originally charged with murder, but that charge was dismissed in September 2021, after he was found incompetent to stand trial twice, based on competency evaluations conducted by medical professionals.

Tom Wine, the Jefferson County Commonwealth's Attorney at the time, filed two petitions in an effort to keep Perkins hospitalized. The second petition led to a civil trial, in which the judge allowed Perkins to be involuntarily hospitalized for 60 days.

On Thursday, with that 60-day period coming to an end and Perkins' release into the public imminent, the new Commonwealth's Attorney, Gerina Whethers, filed another petition asking that Perkins be hospitalized for another 360 days.

"The success of the petition filed today is dependent upon the opinions of medical professionals who have been involved in Perkins' treatment," Whethers' office said in a statement.

Family members Kirsten Russell and Chad Perkins are concerned about what could happen if Gavin Perkins doesn't remain hospitalized.

"We are just trying to prevent really bad things from happening," Chad Perkins said.

They both talk to their brother in the second to last court hearing and told him how devastated they were for what he did.

According to them, he suffers from persecutory delusional disorder.

"He believes that specifically government agents are out to get him," Chad Perkins said. "The FBI, the police, CIA, anyone like that."

Whethers said the case and the family are definitely on her radar.

"I will share with you that we are still here to follow the law... sometimes the law is not what we thought that it needs to be," she said.

A potential loophole in the law could lead to Perkin's release but family members believe the law is being interpreted incorrectly.

Previous stories: