Husband in Lenexa dismembered body case ordered to state mental hospital
A man arrested at a Lenexa storage facility with two small children and his wife’s dismembered body has been found not competent to stand trial.
A Johnson County judge on Thursday ordered that Justin Todd Rey be transferred from jail to the Larned State Hospital for additional evaluation and treatment.
Rey is charged in Johnson and Jackson counties with child endangerment. He is charged in Jackson County with abandonment of a corpse.
According to court documents, Rey said his wife died while giving birth in a Kansas City hotel room.
He and their two children, including a newborn, were found at the Lenexa facility along with dismembered parts of his wife’s body.
Last month, a judge in Johnson County ordered an initial competency evaluation. Based on those results, the judge ordered Rey to Larned.
A criminal defendant must understand the nature of court proceedings and be able to assist in their own defense in order to be competent.
A March 8 court hearing was scheduled to assess the status of the case.
Tony Rizzo: 816-234-4435, @trizzkc
This story was originally published December 15, 2017 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Husband in Lenexa dismembered body case ordered to state mental hospital."