Murder trial on hold awaiting court's decision

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(KSL News) The murder trial of a Utah County man has been put on hold while the Utah Supreme Court decides whether prosecutors or defense attorneys are responsible for proving his sanity at the time of the killing.

Lawyers for Eryk Drej say Utah homicide law does not stipulate which side is responsible for proving mental state in cases where the defendant was possibly mentally ill. They want the court to rule that prosecutors must prove he was sane, rather than them mounting an insanity defense.

Drej is accused of shooting and killing his brother almost three years ago. His lawyers say he is schizophrenic and, at the time of the killing, believed his brother was planning to kill a woman and sell her organs on the black market.