Suspect In Greystone Killing: 'I Did Something Bad'

MORRIS PLAINS, NJ - Somehow Rashid Davis, a 28-year-old patient at Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital, got his hands on an X-Acto knife. And on New Year's Eve he used it to murder a man in his room, cutting him with such force the blade became dislodged from the tool, court documents show.

On New Year's Eve Davis was found wandering the halls of Greystone with blood on his hand and told the staff in his assigned unit that they needed to call the police, court records say.

"You'll find him," Davis told the staff and later told responding officers that he "did something bad," the affidavit of arrest notes.

Greystone Hospital staff located the victim, in a pool of blood between the bathroom area and the living area of the suspect Davis' room, records say. Life-saving efforts were attempted, but the victim was pronounced deceased at the scene.

Patch obtained an affidavit in the case that revealed some of the grisly details in the murder of a patient at Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital. Those alleged details show the suspect matter-of-factly responding to the greusome killing on the day the victim was found – even as he had blood on his hand.

The victim was observed to have multiple stab wounds to the neck area of his upper body and in addition to the blood on the floor, there was blood spatter covering the area, records state.

An autopsy was performed by Dr. Carlos Fonseca of the Morris County Medical Examiner's Office said cause of death was determined to be multiple stab wounds to the neck and the manner of death was determined to be homicide.

The court documents note that video surveillance from the area of Davis' room shows Davis and the victim entering Davis' room together at approximately 2:38 p.m. and, two minutes later, Davis exiting the room by himself and proceeding down the hallway alone.

An X-Acto knife handle without a blade was located in the garbage can of Davis'room with blood on it and the blade was subsequently located under the body, records show.

Davis was charged by warrant-complaint with first degree murder, third degree possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes, and fourth degree unlawful possession of a weapon in connection to the incident, authorities said.

Messages to Greystone administration were not returned.

Donna Leusner, spokesperson for the Department of Health, said her department does not comment on any pending investigation, litigation or personnel actions. The Morris County Prosecutor's Office said no further information would be released at this time, including the identity of the victim.

Davis appeared in front of Superior Court Judge David Ironson Wednesday and waived his right to a detention hearing during a brief court session, according to officials. Davis is scheduled to appear back in court Feb. 3. In the interim, while he is not being held in the Morris County Jail, officials declined to say where Davis is being housed.

Violent Past

Davis has been arrested for murder before, according to authorities.

In 2014, Davis was accused of beating and stabbing an elderly man to death and injuring two others in a separate incident in a Newark apartment building, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

In that case, Davis was charged with murder, felony murder, burglary, robbery, possession of a weapon and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. When he was arrested in May 2014, prosecutors said, he had a loaded firearm.

Later, in August 2016, Davis was found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to a state psychiatric facility based on that finding, according to Essex County Prosecutor's Office spokesperson Katherine Carter.

In the 2014 case, Davis was accused of killing Leonard Pearson, 83, whose body was found by family members in his 15th floor Nevada Street apartment in Newark. Davis was also accused of a separate robbery that occurred on the 19th floor of the same building, the prosecutor's office said. Two people were injured and hospitalized in that incident.

Davis was also found not guilty by reason of insanity in November 2014 on the robbery and weapons charges. For his murder trial, Superior Court Judge Ronald Wigler found him competent to stand trial after a mental health evaluation, authorities said.

After he was found not guilty, Davis was hospitalized at the Ann Klein Forensic Center, a state psychiatric hospital in Ewing, and eventually transferred to Greystone.

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