SAN RAFAEL, CA — A San Rafael woman charged with stabbing her neighbor to death at an unhoused encampment pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity in Marin County Superior Court on Friday, shifting the case toward a two-phase trial that will examine both the killing and her mental state at the time.
Lesieli Violani Illolahia, 31, faces a murder charge in the March 14 death of Alexis Ione Hines. Police found the 28-year-old with fatal stab wounds at an encampment along Andersen Drive. Officers were responding to reports of an assault and pronounced Hines dead at the scene.
San Rafael police said investigators located Illolahia just over 24 hours after the killing, finding her a few blocks from where the stabbing happened. Detectives later searched the area.
Illolahia admitted to the stabbing during an interview with investigators, according to police, though authorities have not publicly identified a motive and continue to examine the circumstances surrounding the confrontation.
Judge Geoffrey Howard outlined Friday how the case will proceed, noting that jurors could hear two separate phases if the trial advances, the Marin Independent Journal reported. The first phase will determine whether Illolahia committed the homicide. The second phase, if necessary, will decide whether she was legally insane at the time, meaning she could not understand the nature or wrongfulness of her actions due to mental illness, the Marin Independent Journal reported.
Illolahia remains in custody without bail as the court orders a psychological evaluation. If a jury finds her legally insane, the court could commit her to a state hospital rather than impose a prison sentence.
The killing took place at an unhoused encampment along Andersen Drive, separate from the city’s sanctioned camping site on Mahone Path, according to police. Investigators continue to review evidence as they prepare for the next stage of proceedings.
MORE: Woman Arrested For Stabbing Death At Marin County Encampment: Police
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