We have previously reported on Kimbrady Carriker, the fine gentleman from Philadelphia accused of a murder rampage which left five people in the Kingsessing neighborhood dead.

As soon as the name of Kimbrady Carriker was released, his social media were investigated, and photos of Mr Carriker in female dress led to immediate speculation that he was, like Audrey Hale in Nashville, yet another transgender killer. Well, that led to Philly officials quickly denying it:

While he acknowledged the social media images that appear to show Carriker wearing women’s clothing and jewelry, Asa Khalif, a member of the LGBTQ advisory committee for the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, condemned the “violent” language coming from the “conservative press” about Carriker’s gender identity and shared what the district attorney’s office knows firsthand about Carriker’s gender identity.

“Appear to show”? No, there’s no “appear to show” here, but actually show. Why would Mr Khalif, who supports the homosexual and transgender community, and must surely not be offended by, or see anything wrong, with cross-dressing, want to mealy-mouth things?

“The suspect has not identified themselves as trans. They have only identified themselves as male,” Khalif said at Wednesday’s news conference. “But the language spewed out by the conservative press is violent and is dangerous, and it’s targeting trans women of color. It’s rallying the community to be violent, and we’re better than that.”

I saw a video of Mr Khalif’s statement, and while he stated that Mr Carriker had not identified as transgender or anything other than male, I also noticed that he went out of his way to use “they/them” pronouns to refer to the suspect. Did Mr Carriker express a preference for such to be used? If so, it hasn’t made the credentialed press, but speaking with the District Attorney at his side, he might have been clued into something the DA’s office knew but hasn’t been made public.

Well, now it’s official: Mr Carriker is cookoo for Cocoa Puffs mentally incompetent to stand trial:

The accused gunman in the Kingsessing mass shooting has been found incompetent to stand trial, pausing his criminal case

Kimbrady Carriker, charged with killing five people during a multi-day shooting rampage, will receive inpatient mental health treatment before his court case can proceed.

by Chris Palmer | Tuesday, August 29, 2023

The man accused of killing five people during a multi-day shooting rampage in Kingsessing earlier this summer has been ordered to receive inpatient mental health treatment before his court case can proceed.

A court-appointed psychiatrist found Kimbrady Carriker incompetent to stand trial, his public defender said in court Tuesday. Carriker, 40, will be sent to a state-run psychiatric facility to receive treatment while his criminal case — which is awaiting a preliminary hearing — is put on indefinite hold.

Carriker is accused of fatally shooting five people and wounding several others during a shooting spree in early July around 56th Street and Chester and Springfield Avenues. He faces a host of charges, including first-degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated assault, and illegal gun possession, and is being held without bail.

I noticed that Chris Palmer, the Philadelphia Inquirer reporter who wrote the story, did not use the “they/them” pronouns the way Mr Khalif did, but the masculine ones. And the Inky, which normally does not publish mugshots, did include Mr Carrikers, a not-particularly-flattering one, but one which nevertheless didn’t show him in drag. No, Mr Palmer did not include the Far Side cartoon I added, but at some point, don’t we have to admit that all mass murderers are Just Plain Nuts?

A number of aspects of the case remained unclear Tuesday, including a potential motive, and no new details were revealed during the hearing before Municipal Court Judge Wendy L. Pew. Attorneys did not provide specifics on Carriker’s mental health assessment, and he was not present for the proceeding.

It’s a common theme: everybody wants to know why he (allegedly) did it, everybody wants to try to understand the crime. But if he is legitimately nuts, perhaps there is no motive of which anyone can make any sense.