Evaluation ordered for man accused of firing at candidate
Feb 28, 2022, 4:09 PM | Updated: 4:30 pm
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The man charged with shooting at a Louisville mayoral candidate will receive a mental health evaluation at a psychiatric hospital to determine if he should be admitted for treatment, according to a court order.
Metro council candidate Quintez Brown, 21, was arrested and charged with attempted murder and four counts of wanton endangerment shortly after the Feb. 14 shooting. Democratic mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg was not hit but said a bullet grazed his sweater.
Greenberg said he was at his campaign headquarters with four colleagues when a man appeared in the doorway and began firing multiple rounds. One staffer managed to shut the door, which they barricaded using tables and desks, and the suspect fled.
Police apprehended him a short time later, less than a half-mile from the scene. A police report said Brown was carrying a loaded 9 mm magazine in his pants pocket and had a drawstring bag with a handgun and additional handgun magazines.
If admitted for treatment, Brown would remain in Our Lady of Peace psychiatric hospital in Louisville “for the duration of his treatment” and then return to home incarceration, according to the court order signed Saturday.
After a group called the Louisville Community Bail Fund paid the $100,000 cash bond on Feb. 16, Brown was fitted with a GPS ankle monitor and taken to his residence, where he has stayed under home incarceration.
In an interview after Brown’s release, Louisville Community Bail Fund organizer Chanelle Helm said the organization was worried Brown would not get mental health resources he needed while in jail.
A judge has ordered Brown to have no contact with Greenberg or his campaign staff and said Brown cannot possess firearms.
Brown, a social justice activist running as an independent for Louisville’s metro council, disappeared for about two weeks last summer. After he was found safe, his parents issued a statement asking for patience and privacy while they attended to his “physical, mental and spiritual needs.”
Police said Brown appears to have acted alone and the motive remains under investigation.
Last week, Brown had his case sent to a grand jury. Kentucky prosecutors and Brown’s attorney agreed to waive the preliminary hearing and a grand jury will meet to consider indictments on March 21.
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Hudspeth Blackburn is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
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