The man accused of fatally stabbing a University of Washington transgender student more than 40 times has been found incompetent to stand trial. Thirty-one-year-old Christopher Leahy faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of 19-year-old Juniper Blessing, who was found dead in the laundry room of her off-campus apartment complex in Seattle on May 10. Prosecutors say Blessing suffered more than 40 stab wounds.
At a hearing on Monday, King County Superior Court Judge Joe Campagna ruled Leahy is not currently competent to face trial and ordered him to undergo competency restoration treatment at Western State Hospital. Leahy will remain under evaluation for 90 days before returning to court in September, when a judge will reassess whether he is competent to stand trial. Investigators say surveillance video placed Leahy in the laundry room during the killing, and charging documents allege his fingerprints were found in blood smears at the scene.
He surrendered to police three days later with his parents and an attorney.
King County prosecutors say they have not found evidence that Blessing’s killing was a hate crime. Following Monday’s hearing, Axton Burton of Pride Across the Bridge said, “The amount of pain that our community has been forced to hold with this atrocity is not OK…Being able to bear witness is very important to us.”
