Today lawyers for Brian Nichols announced they will be asking the jury to find him not guilty by reason of mental illness. Nichols is set to stand trial for a March 2005 shooting rampage at the Fulton County Courthouse that left four people dead. His lawyers say he was suffering a "delusional compulsion" when he committed the killings. Today’s formal filing was careful not to say Nichols was insane. But the result would be the same if Nichols is acquitted by reason of mental illness. He would be committed to a state mental health facility.
