John Sawchak found incompetent for trial in Minneapolis shooting of neighbor
Concern mounts over Minneapolis neighbor shooting
A Minneapolis man accused of shooting his neighbor will make his first appearance in Hennepin County court tomorrow, but concerns continue to surround the Minneapolis Police Department’s decision to not arrest suspect John Sawchak until five days later. FOX 9’s Maury Glover spoke with Minnesota Sen. Ron Latz, who was a proponent Minnesota’s Red Flag Law, about what more could have potentially been done.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A Minneapolis man accused of shooting his neighbor has been found incompetent to stand trial by a second doctor.
The shooting
The backstory:
John Sawchak was arrested in October 2024, accused of shooting his neighbor, Davis Moturi, who was outside doing yard work at the time. He was shot in the neck while cutting down a tree in his front yard.
Minneapolis neighbor shooting set for review
The city auditor's office is set to review the shooting of Davis Moturi by his neighbor last year, after claims that Minneapolis police didn't act soon enough to prevent the violence.
The incident also sparked outrage against Minneapolis police as they took four days to get Sawchak into custody. Minneapolis City Council members wanted to know why.
The incident sparked the legislation of the Red Flag Law, which authorizes a judge to issue an Extreme Risk Protection Order that allows police to remove firearms from a person if that person is at risk of harming themselves or others.
Deemed incompetent
What's new:
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office filed a court document on Wednesday stating that a second doctor, who had evaluated Sawchak on two prior occasions, found him not competent to stand trial.
The HCAO withdrew its request for a competency hearing, and agreed the court should enter a finding of incompetency.
According to court records, his next hearing is scheduled for April 4.
The Source: Information on the case was provided by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office on Wednesday.