WAFFLE HOUSE SHOOTING SUSPECT, DEEMED UNFIT TO STAND TRIAL
Travis Reinking, the man who allegedly killed four people at a Waffle House in Tennessee last spring, is not fit to stand trial, a judge has ruled.
Reinking, 29, appeared in court in Nashville yesterday, where it was revealed he suffers from schizophrenia.
“He is not competent to stand trial,” Rena Isen, a psychologist who evaluated the suspected murderer, said. Reinking reportedly will be committed to a mental hospital for treatment until he’s fit to stand trial.
The judge added that Reinking, who Isen said isn’t taking his medication, poses a substantial threat of harm to the public, if not himself.
Police said Reinking opened fire on April 22 at a Waffle House restaurant in Antioch, which is roughly 11 miles southeast of Nashville. He allegedly used an AR-15-style rifle, and killed four people – DeEbony Groves, 21; Joe Perez, 20; Akilah DaSilva, 23; and Taurean Sanderlin, 29 and injured three others.
James Shaw Jr., who was credited with wrestling Reinking away from his gun, and ultimately hailed a hero, tweeted yesterday he was “discouraged” to hear Reinking’s health status, but said he believes that “Justice will be served.”
Reinking, “in need of immediate judicial hospitalization,” will be committed to a mental-health facility.