After a former Ohio University graduate student was found not guilty by reason of insanity in the 2007 murder of his father, he was sent to a Columbus mental facility in the name of public safety.
But nearly four years later, a re-evaluation of his mental state could bring him back to Athens.
Jonathan Bebb, 36, went on trial in 2007 for stabbing his father and former OU professor Phillip Bebb more than 50 times. In 2008, a jury in the Athens County Court of Common Pleas found him not guilty by reason of insanity, according to a previous article in The Post.
During the trial, a psychologist described incidents where Bebb requested needing medical attention. As a result, he said he thought his water had been poisoned and that the hills were talking to him, according to the previous article.
Bebb was sent to the Twin Valley Behavioral Healthcare center in Columbus, in the interest of public safety, said Athens County Prosecutor C. David Warren.
“(The center) has a lockdown facility,” Warren said.
Because those found not guilty by reason of insanity are re-evaluated every two years to ensure proper care, a motion is now pending that could relocate Bebb to the Appalachian Behavioral Center in Athens, Warren said.
Warren said he would not comment any further on the matter until the completion of the second evaluation.
“(The second evaluation) should be complete some time next month,” he added.
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