Alex Scherer (Credit: WBZ-TV)
SALEM, Mass. (AP) — Lawyers for a Massachusetts man charged with killing his estranged wife in 2015 are expected to use an insanity defense at trial.
The Salem News reports that jury selection in the murder trial of 48-year-old Axel Scherer is scheduled to start Monday in Salem Superior Court.
Prosecutors say the Beverly man strangled 45-year-old Edith Black-Scherer on Nov. 16, 2015 then walked into the Beverly police station to tell officers what he had done.
Police found Black-Scherer still alive, but she died at a hospital days later.
Scherer's lawyer has filed notice that he plans to call a number of witnesses who have evaluated Scherer.
Prosecutors are expected to argue that Scherer made a conscious decision to stop taking medications typically prescribed for bipolar disorder in the days before the attack.
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