Competency exam granted in OSP murder case
Feb. 7—A federal judge granted a request Tuesday for a mental competency examination for an inmate accused of killing his cellmate in 2021.
Austin Furr, 21, of Glenpool, was serving a five-year sentence at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester when he was accused of killing his cellmate, 62-year-old Dong Son, in 2021.
Furr was indicted in the Eastern District of Oklahoma on a charge of second-degree murder in Indian Country.
Attorneys for Furr stated in their request Furr was diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other mental illnesses and was prescribed medication.
"The defendant at all times pertinent to the instant charges did not take his medication as prescribed," the motion states.
The motion also states Furr is currently suffering from anxiety and difficulty sleeping.
"Due to the current symptoms and the previous diagnosis, there is reasonable cause to believe that the defendant may presently be suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering him mentally incompetent to the extent he is unable to understand the nature and consequences of the proceedings against him or to assist him properly in his defense," the motion states.
U.S. District Judge Ronald A. White granted the request, stating in his order there is "reasonable cause" Furr is suffering from a mental disease "such that the court must grant the motion."
White ordered Furr to be placed in the custody of the U.S. Attorney General for prompt placement in a medical facility "for a reasonable period, but not to exceed 30 days."
A jury trial set for March 7 was also continued due to the granting of the exam.
An affidavit in the murder case states investigators with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, Office of the Inspector General were called to OSP on Sept. 26, 2021, for a report of an "inmate on inmate homicide."
According to the report, investigators saw multiple lacerations and several areas of blunt force trauma on Son's body along with paint poured on his face.
Oklahoma Department of Corrections records show Son was serving a life-sentence without parole for the 1989 shooting death of an Oklahoma City business owner.
A search of the cell revealed numerous blood-like splatters along with a "smiley face" drawn in blood on the wall, the report states.
The affidavit states Furr told investigators during an interview that Son attacked him with a wood block object and that he acted in self-defense and Furr used a "homemade sharpened instrument" made of plastic to stab Son multiple times before he stopped moving.
The report states Furr admitted to pouring paint on Son's face during the fight and drawing the smiley face on the wall in blood after the incident occurred and flushing the homemade weapon down the toilet.
An autopsy of Son showed the man was stabbed more than 50 times and "findings consistent of strangulation" along with two bite marks on the man's arm, the report states.
