A Long Island teenager accused of fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend in a murder-suicide attempt has been charged with attempting to hire a fellow inmate to rob the victim's family. Austin Lynch, 18, faces a third psychological evaluation after conflicting reports on his mental fitness to stand trial.
Lynch allegedly killed SUNY Oneonta student Emily Finn inside her home during Thanksgiving break last year before turning the gun on himself. He was initially found unfit to stand trial in January. However, a separate group of experts determined in May that he was fit to proceed with the legal process.
"The court is now in an untenable position — I now have contradictory findings," Judge Anthony Senft Jr. stated in Riverhead court. "He is capable of standing trial on that second case. The only issue we have is the first case where he was found incompetent, and those two decisions are opposite each other."
In March, Lynch was separately charged for allegedly conspiring while incarcerated in Suffolk County to have another inmate burglarize the home of Emily Finn's family. If convicted, Lynch faces up to 25 years to life in prison.