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(CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS) Graham High School Class of 2016 graduate Harrison Brown died from injuries sustained in a stabbing spree in 2017. Kendrex White, who perpetrated the spree, is having a hearing in October to determine if he is released from a mental health facility in Kerrville. -
(DAVID FLYNN | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO) Candlelight illuminates those who packed the Graham High School Stadium where GHS students as well as family and friends of Harrison Brown met for a vigil May 2, 2017. Brown was killed by Kendrex White in a stabbing spree at the University of Texas at Austin. -
(ARCHIVE PHOTO | THE GRAHAM LEADER) The families and survivors of Kendrex White’s stabbing spree speak to the media after the judge’s ruling of not guilty by reason of insanity in December 2018. Shown from left to right are former Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore, Harrison’s brother and mother John and Lori Brown, stabbing victim Stuart Bayliss and his parents Shellane and Paul Bayliss.
A Travis County District Court hearing is upcoming at the beginning of October to determine if Kendrex White could be released from a forensic mental health facility.
The hearing with the 427th Criminal District Court is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1 at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center in Austin. White and his attorneys are seeking to move his status from an inpatient to an outpatient commitment.
White was found not guilty by reason of insanity for the May 2017 fatal stabbing of Harrison Brown. Brown was a 2016 graduate of Graham High School who was attacked in a stabbing spree along with three other students at the University of Texas at Austin.
Of the four that were injured by White, Brown was the only victim who died due to his injuries. Harrison’s brother John released a statement Thursday, July 17, regarding the consideration to transfer White to an outpatient care facility.
“While I forgive my brother’s killer, public safety requires that he remain in inpatient care,” John Brown said. “Not only was my brother murdered that day, three other individuals were stabbed and survived. My mother and I will do everything in our power to ensure that the victims, their families and our communities are protected. Thank you all deeply for your love, prayers and support. In the meantime, Love Hard.”
The original hearing was scheduled for Thursday, July 17, but was postponed due to the flooding in Kerrville, where White is being held at a forensic mental health facility.
White was indicted in July 2017 for the murder of Harrison Brown and three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for injuring Stuart Bayliss, Jonathan Han and Eli Kahan.
Two of the three injured survivors received lacerations to the back of the neck and head and the third received a laceration to his back which required surgery.
In December 2018, White, who was diagnosed with a schizoaffective disorder, was found not guilty by reason of insanity and was ordered to be transferred to a maximum security unit. White was transferred to North Texas State Hospital in Vernon for observation and treatment and later to Kerrville State Hospital.
Along with John, Harrison’s mother, Lori, has been his advocate for years and said when they received the news about the hearing, they had one pressing question – “What has changed?”
Brown said she received the call in the beginning of June from the district attorney’s office in Austin and they explained what the hearing would entail.
“We were a little shocked that it’s only been eight years,” Lori Brown said. “When they came down with the verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity, we were not 100% happy with that, but they told us that because his mental illness was so severe he would probably never get out of Vernon, the maximum security facility. He was in Vernon for eight months and then he was moved to Kerrville.”
The Austin American-Statesman spoke with Brown at the beginning of July and received a statement from the Travis County District Attorney’s Office regarding the July hearing which was postponed.
“The Travis County District Attorney’s Office opposes the potential modification of Mr. White’s inpatient commitment to outpatient status,” the office said in the statement. “We look forward to the upcoming hearing, during which we will request that he continue to receive inpatient mental health services to ensure the safety of our community.”
