A Connecticut man who brutally killed another man with an axe before eating part of his brain and eyeball has been granted conditional release by the state’s Psychiatric Security Review Board (PSRB).
Tyree Smith, who was found Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity for the 2012 murder of Angel Gonzalez, is being released due to what officials describe as “long-term stability” and adherence to treatment.
Smith was initially committed to a psychiatric facility after authorities discovered Gonzalez’s mutilated body in an abandoned building a month after the gruesome attack. During his trial, Smith admitted to eating parts of his victim and expressed remorse, stating, “I’m really sorry for what I did, that I couldn’t be myself. It really had nothing to do with the other person.”
In a statement defending their decision, the PSRB said, “Rehabilitation, not punishment, is the goal for all individuals found Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity.”
Smith’s release has sparked public outrage, with critics questioning whether someone who committed such a violent and disturbing crime should ever be freed, regardless of psychiatric evaluations.
