People v. Atkinson CA2/6

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The Incident Steve and Diane Atkinson, their son John, Appellant, and his sister Jennifer lived on a ranch near Ojai. Appellant's childhood was unremarkable for mental health issues but symptoms began to appear when he was in his mid-teens. By age 20, his irrational behavior had resulted in several arrests and time in jail. Appellant's mental health progressively worsened in spite of his own efforts and the efforts of his parents to treat his problems with psychotherapy and medications. In 2009, Appellant was sentenced to a year in the Santa Barbara County jail. He was transferred to Patton State Hospital for mental health treatment and remained there as a patient for about 10 months. In October or November 2010, Appellant returned to his parents' residence. He was unkempt and appeared to his mother to have been homeless for some time. He was not taking psychotropic medications and became progressively more angry and mistrustful. He refused Diane's entreaties to seek help. He insisted he was "not crazy." On December 9, 2010, Appellant confronted Steve's and Diane's housekeeper and in an angry rage chased her out of the house. The…