BURLINGTON — Aita Gurung, the man accused of murdering his wife with a meat cleaver in Burlington in 2017, is headed back to the custody of the Department of Mental Health after a stint in prison after Attorney General TJ Donovan refiled the charges against him.
At a hospitalization hearing Monday afternoon, Judge Samuel Hoar ruled that Gurung be returned to the custody of the commissioner of the Department of Mental Health. The AG’s office and Gurung’s attorneys agreed to a stipulated order of hospitalization.
Gurung returned to the Vermont Psychiatric Care Hospital in Berlin following the hearing, where he had been housed from October 2017 to spring 2019. He was briefly at a lower level of care facility in Middlesex before his arrest last fall when Donovan refiled the charges.
Hoar ruled on Dec. 31 that Gurung is not competent to stand trial in the murder of his wife, Yogeswari Khadka, 32, and attempted murder of his mother-in-law, Thulsa Rimal, on Oct. 12, 2017.
That ruling means that the court believes Gurung does not currently understand the charges against him. Gurung had been found to be competent to stand trial in December 2017, and Dr. John Malloy testified Monday that he believes Gurung’s mental state has worsened since he was moved to prison.
“It is my opinion that he’s had a worsening of his illness,” Malloy said.
Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George dismissed the murder and attempted murder cases against Gurung last year after she determined that she would be unable to successfully counter his planned insanity defense.
Donovan refiled the charges against Gurung in September 2019, and Gurung was later ordered to be moved to prison. His attorney, Sandra Lee, argued that he should have been kept under the custody of the Department of Mental Health.
Hoar’s ruling that Gurung is not competent to stand trial, which came after a doctor reached the same conclusion, set into motion Monday’s hospitalization hearing.
Malloy treated Gurung at the state hospital from 2017 to 2019 and reviewed Gurung’s more recent records. He testified at Monday’s hearing that a return to the hospital was the most appropropriate step for Gurung’s treatment.
Gurung suffers from an unspecified psychotic disorder and unspecified depressive disorder, Malloy said.
Malloy testified that Gurung has a significant chronic high risk of suicide. With proper treatment, it’s possible that Gurung could become competent again, Malloy said.
Under the hospitalization order, both parties agreed that Gurung is a risk of harm to himself and others and that inpatient treatment is “necessary, adequate and appropriate” for him.
“With restored intensive inpatient services in a secure setting, Mr. Gurung’s mental health would likely improve,” he said. “The restoration of inpatient services is done with the goal of rehabilitating the defendant to competency.”
Gurung is committed to the care and custody of the Department of Mental Health for 90 days under the order, and cannot be discharged without a court hearing. He will undergo another competency examination in 60 days.
Hoar said that the stipulated agreement represented a sensible resolution for the case moving forward while also being a compassionate resolution for Gurung.
Donovan said in a statement earlier this month that he would continue to pursue the case against Gurung despite the finding that he was not competent.
“Competency to stand trial is a dynamic status and can change over time,” Donovan said. “The State of Vermont is committed to seeking justice for the victims, Yogeswari Khadka and Tulasa Rimal, and will continue to prosecute Mr. Gurung for these acts of domestic violence.”
Lee said after Monday’s hearing that a return to the hospital was “the only appropriate placement” for Gurung.
“I’m relieved for Mr. Gurung, but I’m also incredibly saddened that we’re actually here and we had to go through this process in terms of the Attorney General’s Office rebringing this case … given all the medical evidence,” she said.
