Medford, Ore.- A local man will spend life under the review of Oregon’s Psychiatric Security Review Board after stabbing an Ashland man to death in November, 2016.
A judge found Pedro Sabalsa-Mendez Guilty Except for Insanity in the stabbing death of 20-year-old Avi Feldman. According to the Jackson County District Attorney’s Office, experts on both sides of the case determined that at the time of the murder, Sabalsa-Mendez was suffering from schizophrenia. Following the hearing Thursday, Sabalsa-Mendez was taken to Oregon State Hospital.
The judge determined Sabalsa-Mendez had been suffering from delusions for a year before attack. The evening of the stabbing, he became convinced the victim intended to hurt him. Experts believe Sabalsa-Mendez decided to preemptively kill Feldman to avoid what he thought would be his own death.
The Feldman’s father made a statement in court, recalling how generous and giving his son, Avi, had been. Feldman’s mother provided a statement saying she held no ill-will toward Sabalsa-Mendez or his mother, who had tried to get mental health treatment for her son for several months prior to the incident.
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