Published: July 03, 2009 12:02 am      

Son pleads guilty, mentally ill, in murder

BEDFORD — A Bedford County man likely will undergo extensive mental health treatment following his guilty plea to third-degree murder in the bludgeoning death of his father, District Attorney William Higgins said Thursday.

Harold I. Turner, 30, has admitted that he used a wood maul to bludgeon his father, Harold L. Turner, 60, to death in March 2008.

“He pleaded guilty to murder in the third degree, but mentally ill,” Higgins said.

“That means the judge can sentence him as he would if he pleaded guilty to (traditional) third-degree murder, but the judge must consider current mental health issues.”

At Turner’s sentencing, set for September, the Bedford County Public Defenders Office, which is handling his case, will present a report or testimony from a psychiatrist detailing his medical needs.

Turner faces a prison sentence of 20 to 40 years.

It is anticipated that he will have to stay in a secure treatment facility until he is determined to be mentally healthy.

State police said the younger Turner struck his father in the head at least twice in a porch area of the family’s Southampton Township home.

The elder Turner died at Cumberland Memorial Hospital in Maryland.

The cause of death was listed by the coroner as sharp-force trauma to the head.

Authorities said at the time that there was no indication of bad blood between the father and son.

Following the attack, police said, the younger Turner took $400 from his mother and drove the family car west over the state line.

Turner eventually turned himself in at a sheriff’s office in Ohio.

“Mr. Turner is clearly and completely mentally ill,” Higgins said.

“There’s no question about it. It’s a really sad case.”

Journals and notes kept by the defendant provided detailed insight into his mental condition at the time of the murder.

“He realized he did wrong, but it was like he could not stop himself,” Higgins said. “Our office felt this was the appropriate disposition.”