VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The sentencing hearing for a Virginia man who poisoned his former girlfriend with a cyanide injection has been postponed because he was unresponsive and foaming at the mouth when he was wheeled into a Virginia Beach court.
The Virginian-Pilot reports that Joseph Merlino III was rocking from side to side in a gurney type of wheel chair on Wednesday. A jail doctor said Merlino might be suffering from a mental condition caused by stress.
Judge Les Lilley delayed the sentencing until Monday.
A jury convicted Merlino of first-degree murder in June for killing Ellie Tran in 2017. They recommended a life sentence.
Merlino had gone on a hunger strike about two months before his trial began and lost about 40 pounds. The strike ended shortly after the trial did.
___
Information from: The Virginian-Pilot, http://pilotonline.com
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
