GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — He’s been ordered into treatment for severe depression and has attempted suicide several times.
Now, a Grand Rapids judge wants to know if 21-year-old Denny William McNees can assist in his own defense on felony charges that could put the troubled young man in prison for the rest of his life.
McNees is accused of breaking into a home in the city’s Black Hills neighborhood on Feb. 6 and attacking an 11-year-old boy with a utility knife. It was a random attack that left the boy with cuts to his face and head.
Police say McNees had no connection to the home on Sheffield Street SW; he apparently had been checking for unlocked doors and windows to gain entry.
Grand Rapids police, using a tracking dog, located McNees about two miles from where the 3 a.m. attack occurred. The boy was treated at a local hospital for injuries not considered life threatening.
McNees was arraigned on felony charges of first-degree home invasion and assault with intent to murder.
A Grand Rapids District Court judge this week ordered that McNees undergo a competency exam to determine if he understands the charges against him and can assist in his own defense.
Due to a backlog in cases, it could be a few months before the competency exam takes place. That has put upcoming court hearings on hold. In the meantime, McNees remains in the Kent County Jail on a $500,000 bond.
McNees, who was born in Holland, is listed as being homeless. He has been in the emergency room of Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital following suicide attempts and suicidal thoughts, court records show.
A petition was filed in Kent County Probate Court in 2017 to have him hospitalized for mental health treatment.
A Butterworth doctor wrote that McNees “presents with self-harm,’’ and had lacerations on his wrist. “Patient has prior suicide attempts and ER visits for suicidal thoughts,’’ the doctor wrote.
In addition to wrist lacerations, McNees has also tried to hang himself and tried to overdose on Tylenol pills, court records show.
“He feels depressed, sad, hopeless and helpless,’’ a doctor wrote in recommending mental health treatment.
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