Man found not guilty by reason of insanity for killing his wife loses bid for freedom
The 5th District Court of Appeal has rejected Morris Reynolds’ plea to be released from confined mental health treatment after being found not guilty by reason of insanity for killing his wife.
His attorneys filed a writ of habeas corpus asking that he be freed so he could get outpatient treatment.
After Reynolds shot his wife, Joyce, to death at their Pennbrooke Fairways home in 2020, he shot himself in the face and stabbed himself in the chest.
Reynolds, who is now 80 years old, could have been found guilty of second-degree murder but a jury found him to be insane. To be ruled insane, a person must not know that what he was doing was wrong, or not understand the consequences.
A defense psychologist at trial said Reynolds suffered from major depression disorder and post-traumatic stress. He also had a history of abusing alcohol.
In a hearing after the verdict, a mental health expert from the state and for the defense gave their opinion on what should happen to Reynolds.
“Both experts agreed petitioner was mentally ill,” the appellate court noted in a recent decision. They further noted that Reynolds was stable, but only because he was taking his medications under the supervision of jail staffers.
“Petitioner’s own expert testified: 'What I did have concerns about is that the lack of stability in his medication and not being monitored had led to him having difficulty being at risk to himself and/or others and ultimately the homicide and his self-inflicted wounds,' ” the appellate opinion says.
She went on to say that she feared that if he was not supervised, he might become “destabilized, and in that case, he would be manifestly at risk for harm to self or others.”
One of the options the defense suggested besides outpatient treatment was a mental hospital in Clermont, but an assistant state attorney questioned whether the facility was secure enough.
Circuit Judge James Baxley ordered that Reynolds be turned over to the state Department of Children and Families for inpatient treatment.
“There is a plethora of evidence before the trial court to warrant petitioner’s commitment,” the appeal court stated.
Releasing him from a structured environment “would be contrary to the enactments of the Florida Legislature designed to protect innocent members of our communities from such dangerous persons. Simply put, the law does not require, nor will it permit gambling the safety of our citizens by releasing into alternative settings insane acquittees who, in the absence of proper and needed supervision, are manifestly dangerous to themselves or others,” the appellate opinion states.
This article originally appeared on Ocala Star-Banner: No freedom for man found not guilty by reason of insanity in wife's death
