Teen who claims God told him to cause deadly crash indicted for murder

Jack Jordan Photo: The Advocate

BATON ROUGE - A person who was behind the wheel of a car in a fatal crash has been indicted on one count of second-degree murder, according to The Advocate.

Jack Jordan, 18, was formally charged with the murder of 51-year-old Stephanie Payne on Wednesday. The crash that took Payne’s life occurred on July 22 when Jordan, allegedly traveling over 90 mph, plowed into Payne’s stopped car at the intersection of Siegen and Perkins Road.

Jordan told authorities he caused the fatal accident on purpose because God told him to kill himself.

In August, a Baton Rouge judge ruled Jordan was not mentally competent to assist his attorneys and the teen was sent to East Louisiana mental hospital where he remains today.

The hospital reports indicate the restoration of Jordan's competence and his defense attorney, James Manasseh, says that he was not mentally competent at the time of the crash. Manasseh also says Jordan has been a "model patient" during his hospital stay.

Jordan entered a not guilty plea to the second-degree murder charge.

The defense is asking the court to re-request an evaluation of Jordan's mental competence during the time of the crash.

Jordan will be held at the hospital until then.