Hearing on treatment for police officer delayed

5/8/2012

A hearing to determine if any treatment should be ordered for a former Toledo police sergeant found not guilty by reason of insanity for shooting a colleague was postponed Monday in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.

Gloria Burks will return to court June 11. Judge Myron Duhart asked both Burks’ attorneys and assistant prosecutors to file briefs regarding the proper resolution of the case. Burks, 51, was charged with felonious assault with a gun specification and an alternative charge of assault for the Sept. 20, 2010, shooting of Sgt. Jeffery Bechtel in the arm.

After a three-day trial, Judge Duhart ruled March 19 that she was not guilty by reason of insanity. He said she experienced a seizure at the time of the shooting and was not aware of her actions.

The prosecutor’s office is seeking to appeal some of the judge’s ruling that resulted in his finding.

As a result of the finding, Burks will be under the jurisdiction of the court for 13 years, which is the maximum time she faced in prison had she been found guilty of the felonious assault charge.