Man leaves mental hospital to be tried for murder
Jun. 9—Authorities say a man accused of murdering his father five years ago is now competent to stand trial.
Mental health professionals determined after the death of James Buchanan Sr., 80, in April 2017 that James 'Jim' Buchanan Jr. was unable to understand court proceedings and participate in the preparation of his defense.
A judge ordered in December 2017 that Jim be placed with the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction for competency restoration services and returned to Boone County when he was restored.
The court received notice in spring that Buchanan is fit for trial and would be returned to the Boone County Jail from the Richmond State Hospital. Murder suspects are not offered bail in Indiana.
Boone Circuit Court Judge Lori Schein scheduled Buchanan for a February trial on charges of murder and strangulation.
Margaret 'Peggy' Buchanan, Jim's mother, called police March 13, 2017, after she found Jim strangling her husband in their TV room, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Jim Buchanan, 53, admitted to police that he strangled his father, according to the affidavit.
The elder Buchanan was an attorney, a former Boone County prosecutor, and a U.S. Navy veteran.
Peggy told police she was making dinner when Jim came downstairs, "yelling and having a fit," according to court records. It was not unusual behavior for Jim, but he seemed different that night as Peggy listened to him yelling at his father who had been watching TV, she reportedly told investigators.
Peggy found James on the TV room floor with Jim straddling and strangling his father, who was saying, "Jim, you are killing me," then Lebanon Police Detective Tony Bayles wrote in the affidavit.
Peggy called 911 when she could not separate the two men, and James was taken to Witham Hospital and then transported to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis where he died five days later as a result of the injuries he received from being strangled, Bayles reported.
