Suspect in slayings of family had mental-illness history
By Lily Leung and Michael Kiefer
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 25, 2008 12:00 AM
A 26-year-old man suspected of shooting his parents and younger brother Monday night has a long history of mental illness, substance abuse and brushes with the law, court documents state.Sheriff's deputies took Virgil M. Togstad III of Wittmann into custody, and he was booked on three counts of first-degree murder. According to booking documents, detectives said they "were able to smell a moderate amount of alcohol coming from his breath" when Togstad was interviewed after the shootings occurred.
However, Togstad said he had not been drinking and had not done any drugs within the past 72 hours, according to the court documents.The incident began Monday when Maricopa County sheriff's deputies received a call that a man was attacking his family. They arrived about 7:30 p.m. in the 21000 block of West Hovey Avenue, where they found three bodies: one inside the home, one near a doorway and another on the lawn. Togstad immediately surrendered and said, "Maybe I shouldn't have wasted my family," among other
Togstad had an uneventful childhood but was thrown out of high school in the 11th grade for possessing drugs, according to court records. Tests performed by probation officers in 2001 showed that he had a reading ability below sixth-grade level.He started receiving Social Security disability payments in 2001 because of severe migraines. Court records also show that Togstad spent time in jail for a 2001 drunken-driving charge and in 2007 assaulted his mother with a knife. A neurological exam showed abnormal brain waves and the examining physician suggested that Togstad was epileptic.
SOURCE: TheArizonaRepublic
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