Judge makes decision on sanity motion for man who killed Pasco bus driver
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Judge ruled jury will decide if Joshua Davis was sane during 2021 bus stabbing.
- Defense experts argued schizophrenia impaired Davis' ability to know right from wrong.
- Prosecution cited Davis’ actions post-attack as evidence of awareness and intent.
A jury will decide whether a Richland man was sane when he killed a Pasco bus driver outside in September 2021.
Judge Jackie Shea Brown ruled the defense didn’t show that Joshua D. Davis, 38, didn’t understand what he was doing or that it was wrong,
Davis is facing one count of first-degree murder for stabbing Richard “Dick” Lenhart, 72, outside of Longfellow Elementary School in front of a bus full of students. He remains in the Franklin County jail, being held in lieu of $1 million bail.
Shea Brown’s seven-page decision comes after three hearings spaced out over the course of 10 months. It stops short of saying Davis was sane during the murder, allowing a jury to make that decision.
Sanity hearings
Unlike proving someone committed a crime, this hearing required the defense to prove that Davis was more likely than not legally insane.
The defense and prosecutors brought in police officers, Davis’ mother and his former girlfriend to testify.
But most of the testimony came from two forensic psychologists, who both agree that Davis had schizophrenia at the time of the attack, but disagreed on how the disorder affected him.
Both defense expert Alexander Patterson and prosecution expert Richard Yocum agreed that their evaluation was made more difficult because Davis doesn’t remember what happened during the murder.
Patterson looked at Davis’ lengthy history of mental health issues, including about 60 videos. He testified that Davis’s schizophrenia left an otherwise healthy man in debilitating pain, and unable to understand the difference between wrong and right.
Davis appeared to have a serious problem with his memory, and that he only remembered waking up in extreme pain then didn’t remember anything else until he stepped off of the bus, Patterson said.
“Dr. Patterson opined that, while Mr. Davis’ specific motives remain unclear, on a more probable than not basis Mr. Davis’ mental illness prevented him from understanding his actions were wrong at the time of the crime,” Shea Brown wrote in her decision.
Yocum’s analysis focused on the period of time immediately before, during and after the murder. He pointed out there were a number points where Davis acted like he understood what he was doing and that it was wrong.
“Dr. Yocum noted that ‘Mr. Davis is not diagnosed with any medical condition that would cause significant memory impairment,’” Shea Brown wrote. “He further stated, ‘[i]t is important to note that even if Mr. Davis’ reported memory loss is accurate, it doesn’t mean the event [crime] did not happen or that he did not participate in the event.”
Yocum pointed out that Davis used deception when he got on board the bus. He initially asked whether the bus was going to Road 100. When Lenhart said it wasn’t, Davis started back toward the door before pulling out the knife and attacking him.
The psychologist also noted that Davis jumped off of the bus when it started moving forward. A move that could show that he was worried about what would happen if the bus hit a nearby tree.
After leaving, Davis discarded the knife, and told a witness that he was the assailant and directed her to call 911. When officers tried talking to him, he invoked his right to an attorney.
Yocum believed all of these actions show Davis knew what he was doing was wrong and would end in his arrest.