INDIANAPOLIS — The man accused of killing IMPD officer Breann Leath is now seeking an insanity defense less than two weeks after the judge ruled he could face the death penalty.
Attorneys for Elliahs Dorsey filed a notice to the court stating their client is raising an insanity defense on May 24.
Dorsey faces charges, including murder, in the shooting death of Officer Leath.
According to police, Leath and three other officers answered a domestic disturbance call at an east-side apartment complex near 21st Street and Shadeland Avenue.
Prosecutors say Dorsey fired shots through the closed apartment door, striking Leath. She died of two gunshots to the head.
Dorsey also shot and wounded a woman who tried to run from the apartment, prosecutors say.
In the motion, Dorsey’s attorneys say they have received evidence that proves their client was suffering from “mental illness” during the time of the incident.
The attorneys also state that the motion for an insanity defense is late, but issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is partly to blame for their delay.
A Marion County judge ruled earlier this month that the prosecution could more forward with seeking the death penalty against Dorsey.
On May 15, Marion County Superior Court Judge Mark Stoner denied a motion to dismiss the death penalty case.
Dorsey is currently scheduled to be back in court on June 2 for a pretrial conference.
His jury trial is set to begin on Sept. 18.
