Minnesota family says victim's suspected killer may never see prison despite guilty plea
A Minnesota family is losing hope they'll see justice for their murdered son, even though the suspected killer pleaded guilty Monday.
Franklin White pleaded guilty to murder more than two years after Ryan Peterson was killed during a home invasion in Minneapolis.
"Ryan didn't deserve any of this," his brother, Kurt, said. "He lived a happy, wonderful, thoughtful and caring life."
The Petersons say White had a history of stalking Ryan's wife. They were in the courtroom when White admitted to driving to Ryan's home to abduct her.
"He admitted to having that plan," Janet Peterson, Ryan's mother, said. "He admitted to having equipment to break into their house and the weapon with him that he used to murder Ryan."
Despite the guilty plea, the Petersons expect White will never see a prison.
They say it was determined last year that White was insane at the time of the murder.
"The prosecuting attorney said he's 99 percent certain it will be civil commitment," Janet Peterson said. "I have thought about that one percent chance, but I'm not getting my hopes up."
Joe Tamburino, an attorney not associated with the case, says a successful insanity defense would lead to a commitment to a hospital for treatment.
"If a person is found to be not guilty based on being insane, then the criminal proceedings are over," he said.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness says, in general, "If civilly committed, the defendant may be held in a secure treatment facility for a longer period of time than the prison sentence would have been."
That's little comfort to the Petersons.
"That leaves avenues for [White] to be released as long as they can deem him safe to return to the public, which is frightening and threatens our sense of security," Kurt Peterson said.
The judge is set to rule on White's mental illness defense Friday.
The Petersons say Ryan's wife has moved out of the country to get further away from White.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress, get help from the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day to talk about anything.
In addition, help is available from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI. Call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 or text "HelpLine" to 62640. There are more than 600 local NAMI organizations and affiliates across the country, many of which offer free support and education programs.
