By Zahra Khaliq
A man accused of breaking into a house and snatching a four-year-old boy from his cot will finally face trial four years after the tot was found stabbed to death. Little Cash Gernon was fast asleep next to his twin brother when home CCTV showed the suspect, 22-year-old Darriynn Brown, allegedly leaning in, grabbing the youngster and fleeing the property in Dallas, Texas . Tragically, Cash was found dead in a nearby street by a jogger later that day. He died from multiple stab wounds, which officers suspected was inflicted by an “edged weapon.” Brown, who is alleged to have kidnapped and killed the youngster on May 15, 2021, is now due to face trial this year – but one lawyer believes the case could put serious strain on the US legal system, raising questions around how the challenges of mental health and competency are to be defined. In 2022, Brown was evaluated by doctors who said he was unable to understand court proceedings or help with his own defence. But in January, after undergoing treatment through an “outpatient competency restoration program,” he was found competent, with a judge ruling criminal proceedings against him can go ahead. He will also be able to participate in his own defence, the report says. His lawyer, Heath Harris, previously argued the 22-year-old was battling schizophrenia, which caused him to hear voices at the moment he allegedly snatched Cash from his bed. According to former prosecutor and defence attorney Dr Robert Sanders, the case may see a potential defence of insanity. “He might be clearly incompetent to understand the wrongfulness of the action he did at that time, and that could lead to a not guilty by reasonable insanity or guilty by insanity and a lockup at a certain point in time,” Dr Sanders told the Sun . “The way they usually do this is they treat you and determine when you are reasonably competent to stand trial. “They’ve done all of that, and now he’s been determined to be reasonably competent to stand trial, but the defence is still allowed to show that at the time of the offence, he could not understand the wrongfulness of his actions.” The former prosecutor also said the case could bring about a struggle in the US legal system’s ability to balance justice and mental health, and that his defence counsel may argue he should be found not guilty by reason of insanity because he “wasn’t able to contemplate the wrongness of his actions when he took them or not”. Brown was charged with capital murder after Cash’s blood was found on his clothes, according to the murder affidavit. The six-bed family home in Florida Parkway had a surveillance installed which caught the defendant returning for Cash’s twin brother, Carter. The man appeared in the bedroom again at around 7am, authorities said. He hovered over the boy but left after something appeared to have startled him. The motive for the alleged kidnapping and killing of Cash by Brown remains unclear.