FAYETTEVILLE -- A man charged with first-degree murder in a fatal stabbing more than three years ago was acquitted by reason of insanity Tuesday by a Washington County Circuit judge.
Jeremy Steven Borders, 43, was accused of killing Joe Bob Scarborough, 48, on Nov. 6, 2016. Scarborough was found stabbed to death near the intersection of Old Farmington Road and South Green Point Trace.
Involuntary commitment
A procedure whereby a person is confined in a mental institution either for determination of competency to stand trial or after acquittal by reason of insanity.
Source: Staff report
A preliminary arrest report said Scarborough suffered more than 10 stab wounds, many to his torso and face.
Police found Borders, who lived nearby, sitting on a curb wearing shorts and no shirt. He had bloody hands and blood on his chest, shorts and legs.
Borders told police, "I didn't mean to kill him; I didn't want him to kill me," according to the report. Police also found a knife.
Circuit Judge Mark Lindsay entered an order Tuesday acquitting Borders and committing him to the custody of Arkansas State Hospital for further treatment, according to Prosecuting Attorney Matt Durrett.
Doctors at the state hospital found Borders unfit to proceed in September 2017 because he lacked the rational understanding of the criminal proceedings and lacked the capacity to rationally assist and communicate with his attorney.
Dr. Melissa Dannacher recommended inpatient restoration services and a possible medication adjustment to treat persistent auditory hallucinations, according to her report to Lindsay. At the time, Dannacher said she thought Borders could be restored.
Dannacher said Borders reported a history of psychiatric treatment for psychotic symptoms beginning in his late 20s.
Borders was diagnosed with schizophrenia and a history of alcohol use disorder at the State Hospital. He has been at the facility since then.
Several residents said Borders was threatening them from the edge of his property earlier that day. He was shouting at everyone, including children, saying if anyone stepped on his property, he'd kill them, they said.
Neighbors said Scarborough was a well-liked and generous maintenance man for several duplexes along South Green Point Trace, which is just west of Interstate 49.
OTHER CASES
At least four other men have been found unfit in high-profile criminal cases in recent years in Washington County.
In early December 2018, a Springdale man charged with capital murder in a 2013 stabbing was determined not mentally fit for trial and, according to doctors, he may never be.
Juan Pablo Perez-Lopez, 32, pleaded not guilty to killing Jesus Cecilio Villalobos, 48, in Springdale on Feb. 13, 2013. Villalobos was stabbed multiple times.
In October, doctors again concluded Perez-Lopez suffers from schizophrenia. They said further efforts to restore Perez-Lopez to competency are not likely to result in significant improvement.
Judge Lindsay has not entered a formal order acquitting and further committing Perez-Lopez.
Durrett said the criminal case against Perez-Lopez has been reset to this December. He was moved from the State Hospital to a lock-down facility for ongoing treatment. Perez-Lopez will remain in that facility unless he's found to be restored to competency.
Motorists called Springdale police in February 2013 about two men fighting on Huntsville Avenue and said one of them had a knife and was riding away on a bicycle.
Police found Perez-Lopez on a bicycle with a knife and bloody hands, then found Villalobos in a parking lot with multiple stab wounds to his chest and his throat cut, according to a search warrant affidavit. Perez-Lopez told police he went to Walmart, stole a knife and returned to Latino Tires with the intention of stabbing Villalobos because he thought Villalobos was making fun of and taking advantage of him.
Perez-Lopez said he stabbed Villalobos, an auto mechanic, about 20 times at the business and in the street, according to the affidavit.
Raymond Lee Plumlee, 27, of Springdale was acquitted of three counts of attempted capital murder in November 2016 by reason of mental disease or defect because he suffers from schizophrenia and couldn't conform his behavior at the time.
Plumlee was charged with shooting at several law enforcement officers with a 12-gauge shotgun March 15, 2016.
Doctors at the State Hospital found Plumlee unfit to proceed on three occasions. He has been treated for psychosis since at least 2009, according to court documents.
Lindsay found Plumlee committed attempted capital murder, but mental illness prevented him from appreciating the criminality of his conduct. Plumlee was committed to the State Hospital.
Dustin Glenn Price, 29, was found mentally unfit to be tried in February 2018. He pleaded not guilty to two charges of capital murder in connection with the deaths of his parents and multiple other charges.
Police said Theresa Hendershot, 47, called 911 early Aug. 26, 2016, and said her son stabbed her husband at their home in Springdale. Police found the woman dead in the house, and James Hendershot, 47, died at Northwest Medical Center-Springdale. The couple had stab wounds and blunt force trauma injuries.
Price then went to a boarding house where he stabbed and injured Daniel Teyhen, police said. Price was arrested while riding a moped in Fayetteville. He is also accused of stabbing and injuring a Washington County jailer with a homemade knife on Dec. 23, 2016.
Doctors concluded Price suffers from a mental disease, unspecified schizophrenia spectrum and another psychotic disorder. He was committed to the State Hospital. Court records show he has a history of criminal activity, including assault, battery and threatening, dating back to 2007. He was committed several times and was last released in June 2016.
In May 2010, an attempted capital murder charge was dropped against Archie Butler, 77, after he was found unfit to proceed, deemed a danger to himself and others and committed to a residential care facility.
Butler was charged with shooting and injuring Velma Duncan at her beauty shop in Winslow on May 8, 2006.
Prosecutors reserved the right to refile charges against Butler should his ability to proceed to trial ever be restored.
NW News on 01/16/2019