AUSTIN (KXAN) — Questions linger days after a judge ruled the man responsible for a deadly 2017 stabbing on UT’s campus could leave a state mental hospital and transition to outpatient services at a group home.
Kendrex White was found not guilty by reason of insanity for the stabbing. Freshman Harrison Brown died, and three others were injured.
Five of White’s mental health doctors and service providers testified how he was the “gold standard” for mental health treatment and ready to transition to outpatient care at a group home. Prosecutors questioned whether he could follow his treatment process in a less structured environment.
Where is Kendrex White going?
The location of the group home was not disclosed, but White’s attorney Krista Chacona told KXAN “generally, when people go into outpatient, they are not sent back to the same community in which they are charged.”
Genny Moreno, the head of social services at Kerrville State Hospital, said the group home White will be released to contains the highest level of services available for this kind of outpatient treatment. She said at this time, White would be the second person to enter that group home, so there would be two residents and three staff members. At least one of those staff members, Moreno said, would be at the home and available to residents at all times.
The group home is a Home and Community Based Services, or HCBS, home, which is defined by Texas Health and Human Services as providing “opportunities for people to receive long-term services and supports in their own home or community, rather than in an institution or isolated setting.”
Chacona said staff will know where White is at all times, and she also noted that the oversight services outlined in his outpatient plan are “precautions,” and his doctors do not believe he is at risk of putting himself or others in danger.
Joell McNew, president of SafeHorns — a safety advocacy group at UT — said community members still have a lot of questions and concerns.
“They’re really just relying on [White] to do the right thing. Taking his medication, checking in with people. And being a responsible citizen in the community, and a lot of people are very uneasy about that,” she said.
The Travis County District Attorney’s Office and victim Harrison Brown’s family opposed White’s release from Kerrville State Hospital.
“We are profoundly disappointed with the Travis County Justice System once again, but are unshaken. We will continue to pray for those involved, especially for the safety of the community at large,“ said Lori Brown, Harrison’s mother.
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