Fox News Flash top headlines for December 27
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- Joseph Eaton, charged with killing his parents and two family friends shortly after being released from prison in Maine, has decided not to pursue an insanity defense.
- Eaton withdrew his plea of "not criminally responsible" due to mental illness but maintained a plea of not guilty.
- Law enforcement officials say Eaton confessed to the killings at a rural property in Bowdoin and also admitted to injuring three people while shooting at vehicles.
A man charged with killing his parents and two of their friends days after being released from prison in Maine no longer intends to use an insanity defense.
Through his lawyer, Joseph Eaton withdrew a plea of "not criminally responsible" because of mental illness but maintained a plea of not guilty in a court filing earlier this month in Sagadahoc County.
His attorney didn't elaborate on the decision in the Dec. 8 document but noted that it means a forensic report on criminal responsibility will remain impounded. The attorney's office was closed Wednesday and he didn't return an email.
MAINE POLICE IDENTIFY GUNMAN WHO ALLEGEDLY SHOT AND KILLED FOUR PEOPLE, WOUNDED THREE OTHERS
Law enforcement officials say Eaton confessed to the killings at a property in rural Bowdoin and to wounding three people while shooting at vehicles on busy Interstate 295 in Yarmouth.
Joseph Eaton walks into a Maine courtroom at West Bath District Court for his arraignment on July 28, 2023. Eaton, charged with killing his parents and two of their friends days after being released from prison, no longer intends to use an insanity defense. (Brianna Soukup/Portland Press Herald via AP, Pool, File)
Killed in the shootings were Eaton’s parents, Cynthia Eaton, 62, and David Eaton, 66, along with their longtime friends, Bowdoin homeowners Robert Eger, 72, and Patti Eger, 62, officials said.
MAINE MAN INDICTED, ACCUSED OF KILLING PARENTS AND 2 OTHERS
Eaton has been jailed since his arrest on April 18, the day the bodies were discovered. He was arrested near the chaotic scene along the highway.
Eaton previously told the Portland Press Herald, which first reported the change in plea, that he was not in control when he opened fire.
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