NORTHAMPTON, Mass. — A judge has found an Easthampton, Mass., man accused of setting his 83-year-old mother on fire is insane and not guilty of attempted murder. .
The Springfield Republican reports (http://bit.ly/KafiXc) Hampshire Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Kinder ruled Monday in the case of 58-year-old Gary Cernak. Two forensic psychologists said Cernak suffers from paranoid schizophrenia. He has been held at Bridgewater State Hospital since the May 23, 2010, attack.
Defense attorney Thomas Robinson said Gary Cernak believed he received messages through a device in his teeth, and thought his mother was an evil "double agent."
Cernak told police who responded to a call from his mother that he had poured lighter fluid on her and set her on fire. Dorothy Cernak was burned on her face and upper body. Her son's defense lawyer says she has recovered.
Defense attorney Thomas Robinson said Gary Cernak believed he received messages through a device in his teeth, and thought his mother was an evil "double agent."
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Information from: The Springfield Republican, http://www.masslive.com/news/