In a press release, the Supreme Court said Marian Papacsi Owens attacked and killed a friend who had allowed her to spend the night in his home in December 2011. A neighbor testified during Owens' trial that he heard a commotion at the victim's house and went to investigate. He said when he looked in the window he saw Owens standing over the victim, 71-year-old Tommy Janes, beating him with a metal nutcracker. The neighbor said Owens was naked and she was singing hymns during the attack.
Janes died as a result of being stabbed multiple times with the nutcracker.
Initially, Owens was declared incompetent to stand trial. After treatment, however, she was re-evaluated and the case moved forward.
The press release further stated that Owens asked that her court-appointed attorney be dismissed from the case, and she asked that she be allowed to stay out of the courtroom during the trial. The trial judge denied her request to dismiss the lawyer, but did allow her to listen to court proceedings from her cell. Owens testified in the trial against the advice of her attorney, according to the press statement.
Owens was convicted of Janes' murder and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Owens wants a new trial because she believes her constitutional rights were violated when the trial court refused to dismiss her attorney. She claims she received “ineffective assistance” from her trial attorney.
