Guy Who Ate Homeless Man Was Found Not Guilty By Reason Of Insanity
APA Connecticut man who killed a homeless man with a hatchet before eating his eye and parts of his brain has been found not guilty of murder by reason of insanity.
Tyree Lincoln Smith — who said voices in his head told him to kill and eat the man — will likely spend the rest of his life in a mental hospital.
Yale University psychiatrist Dr. Reena Kapoor testified during trial that the voices told Smith to eat the victim's brain so he could better understand human behavior and the eyes so they could see into the "spirit realm," according to the Connecticut Post.
The decomposed body of the homeless man, Angel "Tun Tun" Gonzalez, was found in an abandoned apartment a month after he died, in January 2012.
Smith retained his lust for flesh even after the murder, Kapoor testified.
Insanity defenses are notoriously hard to prove, but Kapoor's testimony likely swayed the jury in favor of the defense. She also testified that Smith has suffered from psychotic incidents since childhood, the Post reported.
Homeless people becoming victims of cannibalism gained national attention after a man who was thought to be on bath salts allegedly attacked and ate the face of a 65-year-old man on a Miami highway. It was later determined that the cannibal, Randy Eugene, had nothing other than marijuana in his system.