Trial set for Aug. 10 may be continued
It appears the first degree murder trial of Caleb Arnett may not take place as scheduled in August following the recent filing of a motion by defense attorneys. On June 15 Robert Kortus, the attorney for the 31-year-old Aurora man charged with the December 2023 stabbing death of his step-father, filed a motion of intent to rely on a defense of not responsible by reason of insanity in the trial.
Subsequently, District Judge Rachael Daugherty entered an order the same day for a mental examination of the defendant under state statute 29-2203.
“The court appoints as qualified experts, Doctors Jennifer Cimple Bohn and Shalyee Schroeder of the Lincoln Regional Center... to inquire into the sanity or insanity of the defendant at the time of the commission of the alleged offense,” the order stated.
The judge’s order further stated that the examination is to be conducted at the Lincoln Regional Center where Arnett has been confined since the spring of 2024 and that results of the examination are to be forwarded to the court and attorneys for both sides.
A status hearing that had been set several months ago for Thursday at 9 a.m. is still on the schedule, however, Hamilton County Attorney Douglas Dexter said he expects that, due to this new development, the trial will be continued.
Arnett is charged with first degree murder and four other felony charges in connection with the stabbing death of Ross Nickolaus and the wounding of his mother and step-brother in their Aurora home on Dec. 2, 2023. Prosecution of the case was delayed for over two years after Arnett was declared mentally incompetent to stand trial in early 2024. However, in March of this year he was declared competent and the case was bound over to district court with a two-week jury trial set to begin Aug. 10.