OKLAHOMA CITY – The man accused of fatally stabbing his father, Oklahoma Labor Commissioner Mark Costello, was found mentally competent to stand trial this week.
Christian Costello was charged with first degree murder in the fatal stabbing of his father at a Braum’s parking lot in August 2015. On Wednesday, a judge found Costello mentally competent to stand trial, which is scheduled for April 3, 2017.
KFOR reports that during a hearing in May, Costello told the court that he “wanted to plead guilty and go to Minnesota to meet with a pediatrician that once helped him.” After that statement, the court ordered that Oklahoma State Department of Mental Health examine Costello and determine if he was competent enough to enter a guilty plea.
The report filed by the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health included statements by a psychiatrist who said that Costello suffers from Schizoaffective disorder, reports KFOR.
Costello’s family say he spent previously 90 days in a mental health facility and took mood stabilizers because he suffers from a mental illness.
The psychiatrist who examined Costello went on to say that he suffers from paranoid delusions and is mentally incompetent to stand trial, reports KFOR. The report goes on to say that Costello understands the charges but “is not able to consult with his attorney and rationally assist in the defense preparation.
KFOR reports that Costello also went on a minute long diatribe where he claimed he was “hit man” and that killing his father was part of a “military operation.”
After reviewing the report, however, the prosecution asked to have their own evaluation and the judge approved the request. Then another hearing was scheduled.
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