Psychiatrist says Jermain Taylor could be released with conditions
Middleweight champ Jermain Taylor "has no one in his life who he feels he can trust," a psychiatrist told an Arkansas judge.
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A psychiatrist who evaluated middleweight champ Jermain Taylor at his attorneys' request said the boxer could be freed on bond under certain conditions, reports the Associated Press.
Dr. David Streett testified that Taylor, who's facing charges in two gun-related incidents, "could be released on bond but made to wear an ankle monitor, get counseling and submit to random drug and alcohol testing," the report said.
Taylor remains in state custody, but has been transferred from jail to a state hospital.
The Arkansas judge hearing the case, Leon Johnson, said he'll wait for state doctors to complete their evaluation of Taylor's mental state. That evaluation, which includes neurological testing, could take weeks.
Streett said the 36-year-old Taylor "has likely suffered brain damage from his boxing career, which makes it difficult for him to control himself when using alcohol or marijuana. The psychiatrist also said the boxer has no one in his life who he feels he can trust," the report said.
"If he can't control himself, then he doesn't need to be out," the judge said, per the Associated Press. "If he can't control his impulses, that's a problem." He also said, "I don't want to keep him locked up. I'm trying to figure out what's best for him."
Taylor pleaded not guilty to first-degree battery and first-degree terroristic threatening charges in the August shooting of his cousin at his home in Maumelle, Ark. Last month, Taylor was charged with aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a minor after police said he opened fire and threatened to shoot a family during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Little Rock.
In his meeting with Taylor, the boxer expressed a desire to live a better life, Streett testified.
