ATLANTA — U.S. Supreme Court Justices heard arguments Tuesday regarding the Cobb County murder case against Damien McElrath.
McElrath is accused of brutally murdering his adoptive mother, Dianne McElrath, by allegedly stabbing her more than 50 times in 2012.
His case went before prosecutors in a non-jury trial in 2014, where he was convicted of murder and aggravated assault. However, that verdict was thrown out.
A judge later granted his motion for a new trial after concluding the then 18-year-old unknowingly waived his right to a jury trial.
Then, in 2017, McElrath went back to court in front of a jury for a new trial. He was found guilty again, but this time there was a twist.
While McElrath was found guilty, he was also found mentally ill for felony murder and aggravated assault charges. However, McElrath was found not guilty of malice murder by reason of insanity.
Attorneys for McElrath appealed his case to the state Supreme Court, which vacated the verdicts as repugnant, finding the jury's decision on the charges inconsistent and contradictory. The high court remanded his case for a new trial.
Now, Carlos Rodriguez and his co-counsel for McElrath are arguing double jeopardy if he is tried again.
"Going back 100 years before even the adoption of the constitution, if a jury in a court with a jurisdiction returns and verdict of acquittal that verdict is final. The defendant may not be subjected to a second prosecution," McElrath's attorney Richard Simpson said.
However, Georgia Solicitor General Stephen Petrany counters, making the argument that double jeopardy doesn't apply.
"In 230 years of federal jurisprudence, Georgia is the only one, and this is the only time the state would be asking to re-try someone for an offense for which he was acquitted," Rodriguez argued. "If the court rules in our favor, then the malice murder count for which he was acquitted is an absolute bar from retrial."
For now, McElrath remains in the Cobb County Jail.
His legal team said he met the legal test for insanity in Georgia and having met that test-- he should not be held criminally. McElrath's attorney believes he should be in a hospital receiving treatment-- not a jail.