Suspect in NHP sergeant’s killing intends to use insanity defense
The suspect in the fatal shooting of a Nevada Highway Patrol sergeant intends to use the insanity defense at trial, the Las Vegas Review-Journal has learned.
John Dabritz, 66, faces the possibility of a death sentence if convicted in the killing of Sgt. Ben Jenkins, who was shot multiple times March 27 after pulling over on U.S. Highway 93 to check on a motorist stopped north of Ely.
Authorities have linked Dabritz to a growing list of crimes since his arrest in the case, including a series of shootings in the Elko and Ely areas, as well as the detonation of an explosive device in Nye County thought to be related to anti-government extremism.
Interviews conducted by the Review-Journal also previously revealed a pattern of paranoid behavior by Dabritz related to the COVID-19 pandemic in the weeks leading up to the killing.
On May 14, the man’s defense attorney, Kirsty Pickering, filed a preliminary notice of intent to present the insanity defense at trial.
In support of that defense, Pickering asked that he be evaluated by an independent forensic psychiatrist prior to a court-ordered competency evaluation at Lakes Crossing Center, a maximum-security psychiatric facility in Sparks.
“Once Mr. Dabritz is at Lakes Crossing, then there is concern that forcible medication will be administered in order to restore him to competency which then prevents the Defense from a true probe into Mr. Dabritz’ actual competency and mental status on March 27, 2020,” Pickering wrote in other court filings obtained by the Review-Journal.
Criminal proceedings in the murder case have been on hold since April 20, when the competency evaluation at Lakes Crossing was ordered.
The status of both the independent and court-ordered evaluations was unclear Tuesday, though the court documents indicate that the forensic psychiatrist was available May 15 to evaluate Dabritz. Jail records show that he remained in custody Tuesday at the White Pine County jail.
“The Defendant has had a long-standing mental disease or defect issue,” the filings state. “The Defendant was receiving mental healthcare treatment long before, as well as at the time, of the events which resulted in his arrest.”
His ex-wife, Haydee, previously told the Review-Journal that he had long suffered from bipolar disorder and had a history of alcoholism.
Dabritz — a research scientist in California in the 1980s before his diagnosis, according to his ex-wife — spent the weeks leading up to the fatal shooting on a paranoid quest to warn people of his theory that the coronavirus was spreading through the water and sewer systems.
In that pursuit, according to White Pine County locals, Dabritz had attempted to take out a full-page ad in The Ely Times about COVID-19; showed up at the McGill-Ruth Sewer & Water District office in McGill wearing a large mask and ranting about COVID-19, and demanding to speak with an engineer or water operator; and delivered a box with “concerning content” to Ely Justice Court, prompting courthouse staff to contact law enforcement.
His efforts eventually landed him at William Bee Ririe Hospital in Ely on a legal mental health hold before he was transferred around March 14 to a mental health facility in Las Vegas. He was released March 20, court records show.
Jenkins was killed a week later.
Contact Rio Lacanlale at rlacanlale@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @riolacanlale on Twitter.
