Delayed justice? We've found hundreds of trials across GA on hold because of this one thing
Hundreds of trials across the state are currently on hold due to a backlog of people waiting to undergo pretrial mental health evaluations to determine if they are competent to stand trial.
Channel 2's Michael Seiden found one murder victim's family has waited nearly three years for justice.
'I think the family's in agony. This is deeply painful for them,' attorney Lynne Borsuk said.
Borsuk represents the family of Ellen Bowles, 77. They learned last week that the trial for the man accused of killing their loved one in 2022 inside her Buckhead townhome is on hold, at least for the next 60 days.
It turns out that Antonio Brown is still waiting to undergo a court-ordered mental health evaluation, which will determine if he's competent to stand trial.
RELATED STORIES:
Man charged with killing 77-year-old Buckhead woman facing evaluation to see if he can stand trial
Man accused of stabbing 77-year-old Buckhead woman to death had multiple previous arrests
Suspect in 77-year-old woman's murder hasn't had his mental health evaluation yet
As Brown continues to sit behind bars here at the Fulton County Jail, Seiden has learned that this is not an isolated issue. In fact, there are currently hundreds of Georgians waiting for the same test.
According to the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, there are currently 767 people awaiting pretrial evaluation.
Right now, the average time to complete one in Fulton County is a little less than two months -- 52 days -- compared to the statewide average of 85 days.
'You can see those numbers have climbed over the last few years,' DBHDD Commissioner Kevin Tanner said last month as he testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Human Services.
He told lawmakers that extra funding is imperative because backlogs have turned county jails into holding areas for people who may be mentally ill.
'You've probably all gotten a call from a sheriff,' Tanner told the subcommittee.
In Fulton County, frustrated families like the Bowles are not interested in the politics.
'It was ordered 17 months ago, and the family is really in distress about this, and they would like to find out whether he's competent for trial and then move toward trial,' Borsuk said.
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