Accused Fresno rampage killer Kori Muhammad pleads not guilty by reason of insanity

Accused Fresno rampage killer Kori Ali Muhammad, who has a documented history of schizophrenia, delusions and hearing voices, pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity on Wednesday to murder and attempted murder charges for his role in a crime spree a year ago.

Muhammad's plea in Fresno Superior Court was unusual because in past proceedings defense attorney Richard Beshwate Jr. had entered not guilty pleas on Muhammad's behalf.

But in cases dealing with insanity pleas, Judge Jonathan Conklin said the law required the defendant to personally enter the plea. When Conklin asked Muhammad if he wanted to enter an insanity plea, Muhammad clearly replied: "Yes, sir."

Conklin accepted the plea and ordered Visalia psychiatrist Luis Velosa to examine Muhammad. Because the prosecution is seeking the death penalty, Conklin ordered Fresno attorney Antonio Alvarez to assist Beshwate in defending Muhammad.

Part of Wednesday's proceeding was closed to the public because it dealt with Muhammad's confidential juvenile records.

Under California law, a not-guilty-by-reason-of-insanity plea applies when a defendant is unable to know right from wrong at the time the crime is committed. If found innocent by reason of insanity, Muhammad would not go back on the streets; he would be locked up in a state hospital for the criminally insane, Beshwate has said. There he would be treated with the goal for him to return to sanity so trial proceedings can resume.

Both sides were ordered to return to court on June 11 is discuss Velosa's findings.

Because of the quirk in the law, getting a mentally ill defendant to enter a plea of not guilty by reason can be difficult.

Years ago, in another high-profile Fresno murder case, defense lawyers wanted Marcus Wesson to enter a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity , but Wesson declined. Wesson was later sentenced to death in 2005 after being convicted in Fresno Superior Court of the orchestrating the killings of nine of his children.

Police say Muhammad, 40, has confessed to the shootings, saying they were fueled by his hatred for white people.

At Wednesday's hearing, Muhammad did not have any outburst. In past proceedings, he would yell that black people need reparations for slavery or natural disasters will plague America. He was temporarily removed from the courtroom.

A criminal complaint charges Muhammad with three counts of murder in the killings of Mark Gassett, David Jackson and Zackary Randalls on April 18 near downtown Fresno. He also is charged with the attempted murders of Stephen Walter, Michael Flores and Mark Greer. In addition, Muhammad is charged with the murder of Motel 6 security guard Carl Allen Williams III, who was shot while working on April 13, and the attempted murder of security guard Oscar Menjivar, who witnessed Williams' killing.

Muhammad, who grew up in Fresno and Sacramento, faces the death penalty because the prosecution has filed two special circumstance allegations — that he committed a multiple murder and that the killings were based on race.

Beshwate, however, has said that Muhammad shouldn't be executed because he has a long documented history of mental illness. Two court-appointed doctors — psychologist Richard Kendall and psychiatrist Howard Terrell — said Muhammad was incompetent to stand trial. Psychologist Reid Meloy, who was hired by the District Attorney's Office, said Muhammad was competent.

in January, Conklin ruled that Muhammad is competent to stand trial. A month later, at Muhammad's preliminary hearing, Conklin ordered Muhammad to stand trial after hearing testimony from police detectives about his confession to the deadly rampage.

This story was originally published April 25, 2018 at 12:44 PM with the headline "Accused Fresno rampage killer Kori Muhammad pleads not guilty by reason of insanity."