ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 23, 1996 TAG: 9603250050
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
When Alexandro Feliciano broke into a Roanoke law office last year, rummaging through legal documents and attempting to access a computer system, he was under the delusion that he was signing a record contract, according to a psychiatric evaluation.
After reviewing the report Friday, Circuit Judge Robert P. Doherty found Feliciano not guilty by reason of insanity.
"It's just as clear as can be, based on the facts of the case, that there were some problems when he was arrested," Doherty said. Feliciano, who has been in the Roanoke City Jail since his arrest last year, will be held in a mental institution until doctors determine he is not a threat to himself or others.
Feliciano, 22, had pleaded no contest to a charge of breaking and entering, but Doherty had taken the matter under advisement until Friday's hearing.
Prosecutors said earlier that they did not believe Feliciano's burglary of the law office of Woods, Rogers and Hazlegrove in the First Union Tower was motivated by any interest he may have had in any case handled by the law firm.
About 3 p.m. Oct. 1, a Sunday afternoon, attorney William Poff noticed a man sitting in an office on the 14th floor. The man was smoking a cigar taken from the office and had his feet propped up on the desk as he attempted to log on to a computer.
Lawyers later found that someone had added notations - what appeared to be grades and comments - on several legal documents found scattered about the office.
According to the psychiatric report, Feliciano was suffering from hallucinations and delusions at the time of the burglary - thinking that he was signing a record contract for himself in the presence of several friends.
Feliciano, who refused to identify himself or accompany lawyers to a security office, was arrested a short time later after police were called to the building. None of the firm's records was lost or damaged during the break-in.
Assistant Public Defender William Fitzpatrick said his client's mental condition has improved markedly since he has been under medication. "He is not the same person now as he was when he was picked up by the police," Fitzpatrick said.
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