Request denied to medically hold man accused of killing his own mother

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - A man accused of killing his own mother could soon be released after a petition filed by the Commonwealth’s Attorney was denied by doctors, according to the man’s family.

Gavin Perkins was twice found incompetent to stand trial for the murder of his mother, Ruth Perkins, back in 2018.

Perkins’ family said with the denial of the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s petition, he could be released over the weekend.

“The Attorney General’s office has offered to take this case over and try different options,” Mike Russell, representative for the Perkins family said in a statement. “The Commonwealth’s Attorney or Governor’s office must invite the Attorney General to do so. We plead this request is made so that we may have a chance for our family or others to avoid any further devastation.”

At a press conference Friday, WAVE News asked Governor Andy Beshear about the family’s fight to block the release and the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s efforts to do so.

“Listen, I’ve lost a friend in a murder, and while I can’t feel what the family is feeling, I know that they’re scared,” Beshear said, “and I believe that the commonwealth’s attorney is doing what she believes that she can do.”

The Perkins family is pleading with the Beshear administration to turnover the case to Attorney General Daniel Cameron so their family and the public have a chance to avoid any further devastation.

Perkins was placed in a state institution, but family said Perkins could be released due to loopholes in Kentucky Revised Statutes 202A and 202C.

202A’s loophole cannot keep individuals found mentally incompetent to stand trial to be involuntarily admitted for a long period, while 202C, designed to close that loophole, meant the individual needed a prior conviction to remain held.

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