By Breaking Belize News Staff: High Court Justice Candace Nanton is expected to decide next month whether Shedrack Richard White, who was found mentally unfit to stand trial for murder in 2024, will remain at the Belize Central Prison or be released into the care of his family.
White appeared before Justice Nanton this week, when the matter was adjourned to October 16, 2026, for a decision on where he should be housed and how his continuing psychiatric treatment will be managed.
The court is also awaiting one final psychiatric evaluation before the decision is handed down.
Justice Nanton expressed concern about ensuring that White has reliable access to his medication and appropriate mental-health care regardless of where he is placed.
White’s sister, Priscilla White, appeared in court and was questioned about the arrangements that would be made if her brother were allowed to return home. The court raised concerns contained in a Community Rehabilitation Officer’s report about whether sufficient living space would be available.
His sister told the court that space would not be an issue, explaining that White occupied the lower flat of the family’s home before his incarceration and that the area remains vacant. She said it would only need to be cleaned and prepared for him.
She also assured the court that she would be able to oversee the administration of White’s medication and ensure that he receives it as required.
The latest proceedings come more than two years after Justice Nanton ruled that White was unfit to stand trial because of mental illness.
In February 2024, the High Court ordered that White be detained in a suitable location at the Kolbe Foundation, receive treatment for schizophrenia and undergo psychiatric reviews every six months. The results were to be provided to the court, particularly if doctors ever determined that he had become fit to stand trial.
Evidence presented during the 2024 competency proceedings showed that White had undergone several psychiatric evaluations. Government psychiatrist Dr. Alejandro Matus testified that earlier assessments had identified bipolar disorder and psychosis before White was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
White is accused of murdering William Emmanuel Rubio in Belize City on July 29, 2020. According to contemporaneous reports, Rubio was fatally stabbed during an altercation near the Pound Yard Bridge area, and White was subsequently arrested and charged with murder.
White has not been tried or convicted of Rubio’s murder because of the finding that he was mentally unfit to stand trial.
Justice Nanton is scheduled to return to the matter on October 16.
The post High Court to decide whether Shedrack White remains in prison or returns home after being found unfit to stand trial appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Breaking Belize News Staff: High Court Justice Candace Nanton is expected to decide next month whether Shedrack Richard White, who was found mentally unfit to stand trial for murder in 2024, will remain at the Belize Central Prison or be released into the care of his family. White appeared before Justice Nanton this week,
The post High Court to decide whether Shedrack White remains in prison or returns home after being found unfit to stand trial appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.