Clackamas County Judge Robert Herndon ruled on Tuesday that Joshua Lee Webb (pictured) was guilty of murder by reason of insanity, something he qualified for based on diagnoses from two psychiatrists who said he suffered from schizophrenia and psychosis. (Clackamas County Sheriff's Office)
A schizophrenic man who walked into a grocery store on Mother’s Day with his own mom’s decapitated head was found guilty of murder by reason of insanity, and sent to a psychiatric hospital Tuesday.
Prosecutors said that on May 14, 2017, Sarah Morris-White went to visit her mother, Tina Webb, at her home in Colton, Oregon. When she entered the house with her children, she found her mother’s headless body on the floor, and the dog dead from apparent stab wounds.
At approximately the same time in the nearby town of Estacada, authorities were called to a grocery store after a man reportedly was seen carrying a knife and a severed head. The man, Joshua Lee Webb, also stabbed an employee while inside the store.
According to court documents, while in the hospital, Webb was in a “catatonic state” for hours, and at one point he said, “I had a nice nap.”
The 37-year-old eventually confessed to killing his dog and his mother, and admitted to attacking the store employee, according to court documents.
Clackamas County Judge Robert Herndon ruled on Tuesday that Webb was guilty of murder by reason of insanity, something he qualified for based on diagnoses from two psychiatrists who said he suffered from schizophrenia and psychosis.
The judge noted that Webb still hears voices despite a year on antipsychotic medications.
Webb was committed to a psychiatric hospital, where he will remain in lieu of prison time.
Under state law, Webb will be evaluated within 90 days, and then at least every two years, to see if his mental state has improved enough to be released — a decision that must be finalized by a state psychiatry review board after a hearing.
Even if Webb is released, he will be under the control of the state’s Criminal Psychiatric Review Board for life, said John Wentworth, senior deputy district attorney.
Webb reportedly had been “doing weird things” prior to the attack.
According to court documents, his mother told her daughter, Morris-White, that Webb “had been doing weird things lately,” and was “losing his mind.”
His father said he had seemed depressed, but had improved.
He even worried about himself — concerned he might hurt someone, Webb voluntarily turned in his guns to police.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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