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Mentally ill man twice convicted of murdering mother

Marietta Daily Journal - 12/14/2017

A west Cobb man has been convicted a second time for stabbing his mother to death in her home.

Damian Cornell McElrath had been convicted of the 2012 murder of Diane McElrath in 2014, but was granted a new trial due to ineffective assistance of his lawyer.

According to a release from the Cobb District Attorney's office, McElrath has long suffered from mental illness and had been in and out of inpatient care in the months leading up to the murder. After the attack, McElrath, who was 18 at the time, called 911 and told police he killed his 58-year-old mother because he believed she had been poisoning him.

Monday evening, a Cobb jury found McElrath guilty but mentally ill on charges of felony murder and aggravated assault.

Cobb Superior Court Judge Reuben Green set sentencing for Thursday at 1:30 p.m. McElrath faces a potential sentence of life in prison.