

PRINCETON TOWNSHIP — A New Brunswick man charged with beating his roommate to death at Princeton House Behavioral Health in 2010 has been found not guilty by reason of insanity and will be committed to a mental health facility.

In a rare bench trial, Superior Court Judge Thomas Sumners acquitted Michael Leal, 21, of murder charges because he did not know what he was doing when he killed 69-year-old James Dunlavey, attorneys in the case said yesterday.

“He had a mental break,” Leal’s attorney Guillermo Arango said. “He had an auditory hallucination at the time of the incident that would render him incapable of understanding his conduct.”

Sumners’ ruling came after several court-ordered mental health evaluations showed that Leal did not understand what he was doing at the time of the incident and that he was not competent to stand trial, Arango said.

Sumners ordered Leal turned over to the custody of Mercer County’s department of human services, which will place him in a mental health facility where he will undergo treatment for his illness, Assistant Prosecutor Brian McCauley said.

“The judge found he is a deviant person still who should be civilly committed,” Arango said. “He still is considered a threat to himself and/or society.”

Leal has been diagnosed as a schizophrenic. He will be required to stay in the mental facility for up to 30 years or until the court, under recommendation from psychiatrists and medical personnel, determines that he has been rehabilitated. Dunlavy, of Highland Park, died from blunt force trauma to the head after he was beaten by Leal,

investigators said. Leal admitted to police that he began to punch and hit Dunlavy because he felt guilty about having sex with the man earlier that night, prosecutors said.

After the beating Leal put a pillow over Dunlavy’s face so he would not have to look at him and left the room to watch television in a common area, prosecutors said.

Dunlavy’s body was discovered by staff members just before 11 p.m., after they noticed Leal’s clothing was bloody, prosecutors said.

The Mercer County Prosecutor’s office has been in contact with Dunlavy’s family and has notified them of the outcome of the case, McCauley said. He noted that both Dunlavy and Leal had been known to have mental health issues.

“It’s not a big surprise since they were both voluntarily committed,” McCauley said. “I think the family knew and understands the situation.”

Leal's mother was also prepared for this conclusion to the case, Arango said.

"She was happy that the court system acknowledged her son's ailments," Arango said. "She doesn't expect him to be released any time soon."

Leal and the administrator of Dunlavy’s estate have filed separate civil lawsuits against Princeton House alleging that personnel at the facility failed to protect both men.

The latter case, a medical malpractice suit filed on behalf of Virginia Feith, the administrator of Dunlavy’s estate, claims employees of the facility were negligent and failed to respond to the assault. Feith is seeking compensation for damages suffered by Dunlavy’s survivors.

Contact Jenna Pizzi at jpizzi@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5717.

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