Attorneys for a man charged with having killed four people in eastern Pennsylvania last summer while on parole for a murder conviction say they may seek an insanity defense at trial or as a reason to argue against the death penalty if he is convicted.
Authorities allege that 37-year-old Michael Eric Ballard repeatedly stabbed his former girlfriend, her father, her grandfather and a neighbor on June 26 in Northampton County. He was on parole from a conviction in a 1991 murder in Allentown.
Ballard's lawyers said in a legal filing Friday that their client may have a cognitive disorder, although more tests are needed. They also want his statements to investigators and his conviction barred from the trial and a jury chosen from another county.
Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli says he does not think an insanity defense will be used.
