A judge has ruled that a man charged in a deadly shooting at a Maryland police station is not qualified to pursue an insanity defense.
The ruling by a Prince George's County Circuit Court judge did acknowledge that 25-year-old Michael Deandre Ford has serious mental-health issues. Ford's attorney, Antoini M. Jones, said at Thursday's hearing that doctors assessed Ford but determined his challenges stemming from childhood are not enough for a possible legal finding of "not criminally responsible," The Washington Post reports.
Ford is accused of attacking a Palmer Park, Maryland, police station in 2016. Undercover narcotics detective 28-year-old Jacai Colson had responded to the gunfire and was fatally shot by another officer.
Ford's two brothers accompanied him to the police station on the day of the shooting. Ford's brothers recorded his "last will and testament" using a cellphone before Ford began shooting.
Ford, then 22, intended to die in the attack and for his brothers to send video of the shootout to the entertainment website WorldStarHipHop.com, officials previously said.
Ford is charged with murder, attempted murder, assault and other offenses. Trial is scheduled to start Oct. 22.
