Anthony Carter
With just weeks before a homicide trial is scheduled to begin, the defense appears to be switching strategies.
Anthony W. Carter, 50, of Indianapolis is charged with murder in the death of 40-year-old Ashley E. Neville. She was killed on April 16, 2023, inside her home along County Road 650S, northeast of Azalia, with her cause of death ruled as a gunshot wound to the head, according to court records.
Carter’s public defender, Greg Long, notified the court last December that he intended to use an insanity defense. Judge James Worton responded by ordering that the defendant be examined by psychologist Kevin Hurley and psychiatrist George Parker.
Parker’s report was filed April 11 while Hurley’s evaluation was submitted May 1. Both reports will remain confidential and become part of a pre-sentence investigation if Carter changes his plea or is found guilty in a trial.
However, on Sept. 26, Long filed a notice that his client will not use an insanity defense.
The trial is scheduled to begin with jury selection at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 22. While there are no more court hearings scheduled at this time, plea bargains have been known to be accepted even after the trial has begun.
An insanity defense is considered one of the most complicated and controversial defense strategies, according to Indianapolis criminal defense attorney David E. Lewis.
Under normal circumstances, it is the prosecutors who have the burden of proving each element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
But when an insanity defense is being used, Lewis said it becomes the defense attorney’s burden to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant had a distorted understanding of reality when the crime took place.
The defense must also prove the defendant was either unaware of their actions or unable to control them at the time of committing the crime, according to Lewis.
After the murder was discovered, Carter told investigators a small pistol fired and struck the victim while he was attempting to grab it away from her, according to a probable cause affidavit. Carter told detectives he “wanted to end her suffering” by putting a plastic bag around Neville’s head and using duct tape to secure it.
The defendant said he then placed his hand over the victim’s mouth to smother her, the court documents stated.
Court officials say the trial will likely last for one-and-a-half weeks.
