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Suspect, a former Capitol staffer, in South Lamar murder found not guilty

A judge found Charles Curry not guilty by reason of insanity, according to KVUE's news partners at the Austin American-Statesman.

AUSTIN, Texas — A former Capitol staffer charged in the murder of his neighbor at a South Lamar apartment complex has been found not guilty, according to a report by KVUE's news partners at the Austin American-Statesman.

The report states that Charles Curry, 32, was declared not guilty by reason of insanity in a series of shootings, which also wounded two others. The ruling was made by State District Judge Julie Kocurek on Thursday after a mutual agreement between the defense and Travis County prosecutors.

The Statesman reports that Curry has been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type, over the course of multiple evaluations.

Curry's neighbor, 32-year-old Christian Meroney, was found shot dead outside of his apartment on July 9, 2018. He lived just six doors down from Curry at the Post South Lamar apartments.

Around the same time as Meroney's shooting, Curry was also accused of firing at vehicles while driving on Interstate 35, Ponciana Drive and South Lamar Boulevard.

Several months before the incidents, employees at the Capitol had expressed concerns about Curry's mental health after he was fired from his role in state Sen. Joan Huffman's office.

Curry was found incompetent to stand trial by a doctor in 2019, but was later declared competent to stand trial in 2020.

Click here to read the Statesman's full report.

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