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A Jefferson County judge has extended the deadline for prosecutors to file formal charges against an 87-year-old man suffering from Alzheimer’s disease who is
Both men suffered from dementia and were residents at an assisted living facility in Lakewood.
Homer Castor was initially set to appear in court Monday morning before the hearing was moved to June 1. The hearing was postponed until after a competency evaluation on Castor is finalized by the Colorado Mental Health Institute in Pueblo where he is being held.
Authorities say Castor beat his roommate, Gerald Propp, to death last month in what appeared to be a bout of confused, brutal rage.
A nurse at the Atria Applewood found Castor, a man in a latter stage of Alzheimer’s disease, standing covered in blood in a room where Propp, another dementia patient, lay beaten and dying in his bed, court records show.
Three weeks before the fatal beating, Propp’s wife heard Castor say, “He makes me so mad I want to punch him out.” Police also found the two men had been involved a week later in a physical clash that left Propp with superficial scratches.
Castor is being held without bail on suspicion of homicide and crimes against an “at-risk adult” in the attack, police said last week. Investigators found blood splattered on the bedroom walls, carpet, dresser and doors, an arrest affidavit shows.
Facility employees told police they had to block Castor from attacking another resident after he beat Propp, according to the affidavit.
An emergency-room physician’s assistant told investigators the beating was so severe that it left Propp with bleeding on the left side of his brain.
Castor told investigators he thought Propp had come over in the night to beat him up before Propp went back to bed and pretended to be asleep. During an interview, Castor told investigators he had a wife but could not remember her name.
An Atria Applewood file said Castor is known for talking to himself in the mirror and becoming angry when he doesn’t recognize that it’s him. He often told people he is 30 years old, court records show.
Police say Castor admitted to the beating during a police interview, although investigators had trouble understanding him as he talked about needing to change his shirt and his wristwatch.
The Denver Post could find no criminal history for Castor in Colorado.
Jesse Paul: 303-954-1733, jpaul@denverpost.com or twitter.com/JesseAPaul
