So many calls to police before this happened

Family
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Denton man ruled competent to stand trial in mother’s slaying

The Denton County Jail is located at 127 N. Woodrow Lane in Denton.

Brooke Colombo / Brooke Colombo/DRC

A Denton man charged with his mother’s slaying and beheading was brought back to the county jail Wednesday after reportedly regaining mental competency.

Isaac Warriner, 28, has been awaiting trial for five years and seven months since he was arrested in May 2019.

A psychologist determined in 2021 that Warriner was mentally incompetent to stand trial, meaning he was either not able to consult with his lawyer with a reasonable degree of understanding and/or did not have a rational or factual understanding of the legal proceedings against him.

Texas law mandates that mental health facilities under the Texas Health and Human Services Commission work to restore defendants’ competency.

Warriner did not receive treatment at a state facility until October 2023 due to statewide staffing shortages.

Jamie Beck, Denton County’s first assistant criminal district attorney, said Friday that Warriner has regained competency, and prosecutors can move forward with selecting a trial date.

211th District Court Judge Brody Shanklin issued a bench warrant on Dec. 5 for the state hospital to return Warriner to the custody of the Denton County Sheriff’s Office.

Warriner was booked back in at the Denton County Jail on Wednesday, but no new court dates had been set as of Friday morning.

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Isaac Warriner, in his most recent Denton County Jail mug shot on Wednesday.

Warriner’s alleged crimes

Denton officers received a call on May 5, 2019, about a suspicious person at an apartment complex in the 2400 block of Stockbridge Road.

Officers located a shopping cart of cleaning supplies outside Warriner’s apartment. An affidavit states that his apartment was unlocked, so officers entered and located a deceased woman.

After obtaining a search warrant, investigators entered the apartment and determined the woman was in a state of decomposition that led them to believe she had been dead for at least two days. Her head had been severed.

The woman was 65-year-old Sarah Ann Warriner, who lived at the apartment with her then-22-year-old son, Isaac.

Officers had responded to a welfare call at the apartment on May 1, 2019. Sarah Warriner alleged that her son had cut his arms with a razor the day prior.

She took him to the hospital. She alleged that Isaac Warriner told the nurse he was going to kill himself and his mother. The nurse also reported the incident to police.

He was charged with murder, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence.

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What a world we live in. NOW the government steps in, medicates him and puts him on trial.

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This is unreal that this could be happening. So many people were warned that he was dangerous. This is so scary and makes me more scared of my son when he is released from jail. It is absurd that no one listens until it is too late.

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When it originally happened there was some public outcry from his friends. His friends had been calling the police trying to get them involved. Doesn’t have to be this way.

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I understand that many reports might have been made on this individual before he became murderous. I have very personal reality on the fact that it took over 40 police visits to my home to result in just 5 mental health holds on my daughter. More than 30 times the police could do nothing legally but talk to her and see if she displayed threat to self or others. But she displayed no threat of danger to the police most of those 40 visits by police or fire-rescue to my home. This shows that MANY MANY calls might have to be made to the authorities, sometimes over and over again in a short time period, and the family has to hope that their loved one will still act out and look like a threat when the police arrive. The police can ONLY act on what they see in front of them, and many mentally ill people know how to act logical when confronted with the police. Friends and family get the brunt of the psychotic behavior when police aren’t present.

The thing that I didn’t know was that in Florida there is something called an ex-parte mental hold that can be ordered by a judge. This hold is carried out by the Sheriff’s office (not the police on a 911 call) and lasts for 3 days in a mental ward. The judge approves the ex-parte based on reports of violence or threats seen by the person filing the papers. This could be done by a friend or family member who observed a danger to self or others on the part of the mentally ill person. Even the police NEVER told me to look into getting an ex-parte order. I forget how I actually found out, but it was AFTER the 5th involuntary hospitalization of my daughter, so was not needed in my case by then.

Anyone who sees or hears of a dangerous threat from a loved one, who doesn’t get emergency help for any reason, could and SHOULD FILE AN EX-PARTE with their local courts to get the person hospitalized by a judge’s order. Hopefully, while in the hospital for those 3 days, the mentally ill person will display some type of violent intent and be placed on medicine or a longer hold. But, it doesn’t always work out no matter what is tried.

The mental hospital got this man back to competence. I hope the man continues to get mental health treatment in jail, since the judge ordered him out of the mental hospital for trial. Who knows if the jail will continue the meds the hospital had him on that brought him back to competence to stand trial?

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Such good advice @oldladyblue

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“This is so scary and makes me more scared of my son when he is released from jail”

Yes Irene, this rings familiar with me. Billy tried to kill my mother and not only did my parents not press charges, they let him keep living with them. I was very frightened and argued with my father. He said “It’s this or prison for him.” This was after he had stabbed my mother with a kitchen knife! I said “Prison is where that bastard belongs!” My father was shocked, and angry at me for saying that. But I never regretted telling him that.

When I used to talk to authorities like the police, psychiatrists, and social workers, they used to tell me stuff that made me think they hadn’t the slightest idea what kind of person they were talking about. I often bit my tongue but in retrospect I shouldn’t have. I actually doubted my own judgement - was he really that bad? Even his psychiatrist can’t see it - and now I can say yes he was that bad.

Reading about situations like Warriner make me realize it could have been worse. This easily could have been Billy, including the situation trying to get authorities to realize the danger. I lived my whole life on pins and needles, waiting to get the call that Billy had finally succeeded in doing something truly horrendous. I still jump when the phone rings, and my heart skips a beat and I have to take one of my heart pills. In fact, I turned the ringer off on my phone; every ring is a mini heart attack, and I can’t take it.

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Thank you for your information. I reported about my son with a diagnosis of SZ, some paranoia and pychosis, and found incompetent to stand trial. He was placed in single cells for a long time, the judge ordered an inpatient hospital treatment, BUT in TX that may be a year wait! So he was kept in jail with various degrees of inmates. He was ordered meds, but he didnt take them after they made him feel horrible. So after 10 months in jail, he was declared competent after about an hours visit with the evaluator! Now he is out awaiting trial, homeless. Its heartbreaking! I leave messages for his atty to call & set up the trial. No response. Since my son blames me for all his problems, i do fear for my safety. These stories reported about violence are indeed scary! Im moving and really hope i can find way to get an untraceable address! I love my son dearly, but am in my 70’s and know i could not handle the fear of living with him. Its awful! I just want help for him! He doesn’t think he had mental problems at all! Thank you for listening.

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I feel the same way, Eddie. I’m so sorry.

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I am glad you are on this forum with people who understand the heartbreak of this horrific illness. My son went off his meds for 7 months and is now in county jail. He also blames me for everything that happens to him. I feel so sad for him but I am so afraid of him. I tried to take care of him for over a decade and he only got worse. I am too tired and am in my late 60 s and don t have the energy or motivation to keep helping him at the same level I was. We have to remember that our lives our important too.

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Oh hugs @Momof7 . I can understand your fear and frustration with “the system”. At your age (I am 68 so I understand), you really cannot give up your own peace and safety for your son, especially as he refuses meds. Maybe someday that will change, and he will gain some insight. But it is called anosognosia and a great majority of persons with schizophrenia never knew that anything is wrong with the way they think until after meds help them gain insight. Good luck with your move, that is probably a good (but painful) idea of a solution for you.

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I hope, Irene, that you can find some peace for yourself. You are not to blame for the events in your son’s life, especially after 10 years of fighting to help him. Although it is sad to say, it’s true that while an inmate is in jail or hospital they are usually safe. It is not pleasant, but for the most part, you don’t have to worry about them on the streets, or about your own safety if they are in your home. I wish I’d learned to relax when either my daughter or husband were locked up. Now I know better, and handle myself differently to reduce my anxiety. My husband knows I won’t bail him out of jail if he gets himself arrested again, and my daughter has stayed on her meds for years now since her last arrest.

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Hi, Thanks for the good advise to relax while my son is in jail. I have been able to relax more knowing he is safe and watched now. I know the chaos will start up again after he is out. He can no longer live in the townhome that I provided him as the association and neighbors and me do not want him back. He destroyed the place.would put cigarettes out on the carpet, he was told many times that smoking was not allowed in the unit. It has to be gutted to be put on rental market. He stole from everyones cars and patios and garages and stole alcohol from pro golf shop here. I am hoping that he can get in mental health program and they can find him a group home or something. He has been in lockdown and solitaire in jail which tell me he is acting up there. I am trying to take one day at a time and be thankful for this respite. It is so good your daughter is so stable. Thanks for all your good insight in this horrible sz journey . Have a joyful peaceful holiday! Many hugs to you.

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I am glad that you are finding some ways to relax while your son is in jail. I too hope he can get into a mental health program or group home after release. Time will tell. Please do find continued ways to care for yourself and for your own safety no matter what happens. It is a horrible journey to try and help someone with this dread disease, but one day at a time is the right way to get through. I am so lucky that my daughter has been stable for years now, and as you know, it would never have happened without navigating the legal system. Good holiday wishes for you too, and hugs.

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In my area there is a well known case where a guy that had multiple contacts with the police and mental health services when on a rampage killing three people. I am not going to mention the name of the person, but it is easy to find online. One of the ways I got my wife’s case to finally be taken seriously was to mention that guy’s name in correspondence with the services.

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