PHOENIX, AZ — Phoenix police say an 83-year-old man is dead after getting into a fight with another patient at the Arizona Community Protection and Treatment Center Tuesday morning.
Authorities were called to the psychiatric facility at the Arizona State Hospital near 24th and Van Buren streets around 7:32 a.m.
Police say Donald Prather got into an argument with a patient in the room next door about his radio being too loud.
Robert Wayne Fleming, 58, struck Prather several times and he fell to the ground unconscious, and struck his head on the floor.
Prather was taken to the hospital where he later died, said Phoenix Police Sgt. Tommy Thompson.
The Arizona Department of Health Services issued the following statement late Tuesday night:
The Arizona Department of Health Services notified the Phoenix Police Department about an incident involving two individuals at the Arizona Community Protection and Treatment Center (ACPTC) and is cooperating with authorities as they conduct the criminal investigation. The ACPTC provides treatment and housing for individuals who have committed a sexually violent offense, completed their mandatory sentence with the Arizona Department of Corrections, and are deemed unsafe to return to the community based on their status as a sexually violent person with a high likelihood to reoffend. These individuals are court ordered to our facility through a petition process by the county prosecutor.
Fleming was booked into the Maricopa County Jail where he is facing second degree murder charges.
