Montgomery County man accused of killing his mom’s boyfriend is ruled mentally unfit to stand trial
A county judge ordered Jules Demetrius Ross Jr. to spend six months in a mental health facility.
A Montgomery County man who told police that he killed his mother’s boyfriend while protecting her from domestic abuse is incompetent to stand trial, and must undergo six months of evaluation at a mental health facility, a judge ruled late Friday.
Jules Demetrius Ross Jr., 28, was ordered to spend 180 days at Norristown State Hospital by County Judge William Carpenter. Ross was arrested in February 2019 and charged with first- and third-degree murder in the death of Johnny Johnson, who was dating Ross’ mother, Chiquita Brown, court records show.
Carpenter’s ruling came after psychiatrists from the prosecution and defense examined Ross and agreed he was unfit to face criminal proceedings. After his time at the hospital, during which he will undergo additional treatment, Ross will face another evaluation to see if he is able to stand trial.
In an interview shortly after Ross’ arrest, his mother told The Inquirer that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and had been under a doctor’s care since he was 18.
» READ MORE: ‘He was trying to protect his mom.' Montgomery County man charged with fatal stabbing of mother’s boyfriend
On the night of the stabbing, Ross was present in the Upper Dublin home he shared with his mother, she said. Johnson, 49, argued with Brown for two hours, cursing her, calling her names, and at one point threatening to knock her out, she told The Inquirer.
“He was trying to protect his mom,” Brown said, adding that her son had been a bystander to multiple instances of abuse during her 10-year relationship with Johnson.
In the affidavit of probable cause for Ross’ arrest, he and Brown provided conflicting accounts of what led to the fatal attack.
Brown told detectives she and Johnson were arguing in their bedroom when Ross knocked at the door and told Johnson to “cut the noise.” Brown told her son that “they were fine and just arguing.” As she walked from the bedroom, she said, Ross charged past her and accused Johnson of “hitting my mom.” She then heard Johnson asking for help and saw him bleeding from the neck, and her son holding a kitchen knife.
Ross later told detectives he kicked the bedroom door open and saw Johnson standing over his mother, who was seated on the bed. Ross said Johnson started “swinging on me,” and that is when he stabbed him. Johnson was unarmed.