Former NFL Player De'von Hall Found Not Guilty of Killing Mom by Reason of Insanity

De’von Hall, a former NFL player who was on trial for murder in the slaying of his mother in 2017, has been found not guilty by reason of insanity.

Last week, Judge Lauren Weis Bernstein made the ruling in Los Angeles County Superior Court Hall, 32, after considering mental health observations from doctors commissioned by both the defense and prosecution, according to the Los Angeles Times.

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In April 2017, Alecia Benson, 48, was found battered at a home in L.A.’s Windsor Hills area and succumbed to her injuries four days later in the hospital, the L.A. Times reported at the time. Her only child Hall, was apprehended by police and arrested for allegedly attacking and killing her.

“Alecia Benson was a wonderful mother who tragically died,” a public defender for Hall said in a statement, per the L.A. Times. “Mr. Hall will now go to a state hospital to get the type of mental health treatment that Ms. Benson always wanted for her son.”

The 6-foot-3 athlete had a brief stint in the NFL as a defensive back for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Indianapolis Colts. He played college football at Utah State.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Following his time in professional football, Hall reportedly dealt with mental health issues and struggled with homelessness, until his mom tried to help by taking him in, according to KCAL. He lived with her for two months before her death.

Image zoom De’von Hall, 2010 NFL via Getty

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According to a 911 call as reported by the L.A. Times, a witness said Hall attacked his mom.

“He hit her. He stomped her out,” the witness told a dispatcher when reporting the incident. “They got in a tussling match and next thing you know she was on the ground and he was stomping her out.”

In the wake of Benson’s death, family members opened up to KCAL, sharing their shock and disbelief.

“It was like a switch that had gone off,” one cousin told the outlet. “I didn’t recognize [him] anymore.”