PORT ANGELES — Shay C. Darrow, a Port Angeles man charged with killing his father more than two years ago, will soon find out whether a state psychiatrist agrees that he was legally insane at the time of the alleged murder.
Darrow, 29, is charged with first-degree murder with domestic violence for the shooting death of Clint Darrow on Jan. 12, 2017.
Port Angeles police said Shay Darrow fired 29 rounds at his father with a semi-automatic .45-caliber pistol in his home. Clint Darrow was 53.
Shay Darrow had stopped taking his medication for schizoaffective disorder prior to the shooting, police said in the probable cause affidavit.
Defense attorney John Hayden has said his client intends to plead not guilty by reason of insanity.
Hayden reported Friday that psychiatrist Barry Ward of the Office of Forensic Mental Health Services had conducted follow-up interviews needed for Darrow’s forensic evaluation.
“He finally had a chance to talk with Shay’s mom, and she gave him a couple other names,” Hayden told Superior Court Judge Brian Coughenour on Friday.
“So I expect that he is pretty close to getting finished. I would think within a couple of weeks we’ll have his report.”
Coughenour scheduled a review hearing for Feb. 8.
Shay Darrow has been in custody longer than any other inmate in the Clallam County jail. He is being held on $500,000 bail.
He waived his right to a speedy trail several times in the last two years.
Shay Darrow spent much of 2017 undergoing competency restoration at Western State Hospital.
A state psychologist determined last January that Darrow’s schizophrenia was in partial remission and that he had the capacity to understand the charge against him and ability to assist in his own defense, the competency evaluation said.
An insanity evaluation was ordered last July.
“That’s what’s being completed, hopefully fairly quickly,” Hayden said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
