GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) — A Grand Junction man has pleaded guilty to killing his mother in a rage over a cigarette.
The Daily Sentinel reports (http://bit.ly/1hqvbB0 ) that 32-year-old Daniel Stetzel pleaded guilty on Tuesday to second-degree murder in the death of 54-year-old Kathleen Stetzel.
Kathleen Stetzel’s body was found dumped in the desert in July 2014.
In court Tuesday, Daniel Stetzel told the judge he is on medication for paranoid schizophrenia and that he does not hear voices as frequently has he once did. He admitted to killing his mother after she became upset that he took a cigarette off a table at the family home.
Stetzel’s mental competency was a factor in the criminal proceedings. He spent 10 months at a mental health institution before being deemed competent to stand trial in September.
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Information from: The Daily Sentinel, http://www.gjsentinel.com
