Authorities allege that Chanel Lewis (pictured), 21, raped and murdered 30-year-old Karina Vetrano as she jogged near her Howard Beach home
Lawyers acting for a man accused of raping and murdering a woman as she jogged near her home will drop their bid for an insanity defense.
Authorities allege that Chanel Lewis, 21, raped and murdered 30-year-old Karina Vetrano as she jogged near her Howard Beach home in Spring Creek Park on August 2, 2016.
But his attorneys shocked prosecutors when they pulled their insanity plea after citing that his ‘mental issues’ were ‘not enough to make a legal statement’.
Robert Moeller, who spoke after Lewis appeared at Queens Criminal Court on Thursday according to DNAInfo, said: ‘It doesn’t mean he doesn’t have problems. He’s got issues. He’s got issues from way back.
‘It’s just not at the level of legal insanity for the defense.’
Lewis was assessed by psychiatrists while being held at Rikers Island prison, his lawyers said.
Lewis’s attorneys shocked prosecutors when they pulled their insanity plea after citing that his ‘mental issues’ were ‘not enough to make a legal statement’. Pictured: Vetrano
Lewis was assessed by psychiatrists while being held at Rikers Island prison, his lawyers said. Pictured: Vetrano with her father
NYPD detectives say Lewis made ‘detailed’ descriptions of how he attacked Karina (pictured) during her evening jog after being arrested at his family home in Brooklyn
His defense will instead be hinged on DNA evidence.
The Legal Aid Society said it will assess Lewis’s full DNA profile, as requested by Lewis’s team.
The will also request that the DNA profiles of over 150 persons of interest swabbed by police after Vetrano’s death also be released.
NYPD detectives say Lewis made ‘detailed’ descriptions of how he attacked Karina during her evening jog after being arrested at his family home in Brooklyn.
Once in custody, he told them that he ‘lost it’ and choked her after venturing to the park while angry about how many people were in his crowded home.
But Moeller also said his client’s confession was given only after he had been in custody for ‘nearly 24 hours’ – apparently casting doubt on its authenticity.
Meanwhile, Brad Leventhal – the assistant district attorney – said he ‘really wasn’t expecting this’.
The case is due back in court on November 20.
Police surround the area where Karina Vetrano was found dead in August last year