Doctors: Arkansan accused of shooting sheriff's deputy not criminally responsible due to mental illness

Raymond Lee Plumlee
Raymond Lee Plumlee

Doctors say an Arkansas man accused of shooting a sheriff's deputy in 2016 suffers from schizophrenia and could not control his behavior at the time, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

Raymond Lee Plumlee, 26, of Springdale, is charged with three counts of attempted capital murder for shooting at several law enforcement officers March 15, 2016, according to the newspaper.

Lt. Tion Augustine of the Washington County sheriff's office was shot in the hip and reportedly returned to duty after surgery.

Plumlee pleaded not guilty in April 2016. A mental evaluation in August 2017 found him unfit for trial, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

An examination of the 26-year-old earlier this month showed that his state of mind at the time of the shooting rendered him incapable of "appreciating the criminality of his conduct and incapable of conforming his conduct to the requirements of law," according to a doctor's report cited by the newspaper.

The report states that Plumlee was experiencing auditory hallucinations and paranoia.

On the day of the shooting, his mother contacted law enforcement to say he was "psychotic and suicidal," according to a police report, and Plumlee fired multiple shots through bushes when authorities arrived, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.

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