Charges dropped against man accused of trying to murder Lakewood doctor following Colorado statute change
Denver 7 News
LAKEWOOD, Colo. A man arrested for allegedly stabbing a doctor in 2022 is no longer facing criminal charges as of Tuesday morning.
A judge was "forced" to dismiss the case after a Colorado statute recently changed.
Ross McPherson was deemed "incompetent to proceed without restorability" as of July, despite being arrested two years ago. A bill passed during the most recent legislative session impacted the law pertaining to defendants like McPherson.
What previously read "the court may terminate criminal proceedings" now reads "the court shall dismiss criminal proceedings" if a defendant is found incompetent to proceed.
The victim in this case, Dr. Scott Green, a family physician in Lakewood, reached out to Denver7 Investigates in September with concerns about his alleged attacker being released from custody.
"The outcome was expected and the hope is that the legislature will fix this so this doesn't keep happening," said Green following the judge's dismissal.
"I'm really troubled by the nature of the statute," said First Judicial District Attorney Alexis King, who oversees Jefferson and Gilpin counties. "I think that our legislature is pro-reform, and reform can be great, but you have to build something in its place."
After several hearings, McPherson was eventually involuntarily admitted to Colorado's Mental Health Hospital in Pueblo (CMHHIP) under a civil court process known as a civil commitment. CMHIPP is known for a backlog of patients waiting to get in, and defendants like McPherson cannot be civilly committed without a hospital to go to.
King attributed the outcome of this case to collaborative efforts between both attorneys and judges.
"I think that the intent of the statutory change was to encourage civil commitment. We've now experienced how incredibly hard that is and how few resources have been dedicated to it, and so while I think that that was the intent, it is not viable," said King.
McPherson is in the state hospital under what is referred to as a "short-term certification," meaning he will be reevaluated in three months.
"From our perspective, a three-month turnaround is very short," said King.
There is the possibility of McPherson being civilly committed under a "long-term certification" in which he will be reevaluated every six months, but that is not official yet. If McPherson is released from the state hospital, Green will not be informed.
Green has been granted a civil protection order but says it provides him "very little" relief.
"Even the legal system says it's just a piece of paper," said King.
Green's goal is to advocate for legislative reform to prevent other victims from being put in the same position.