LAWRENCEVILLE - A man accused of hitting an elementary school pupil in the head with a hammer has waived arraignment and will undergo a state-ordered mental evaluation.
Chad Brant Hagaman, 30, entered a written plea of innocent Tuesday.
Defense lawyer Elizabeth Peterson said she notified District Attorney Danny Porter that Hagaman's defense will be innocent by reason of insanity. Hagaman recently underwent a mental examination that shows he suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, Peterson said.
Porter said there will be a state-ordered evaluation for Hagaman. He is accused of striking 10-year-old Elisabeth Anna Leake twice in the head Feb. 21 as she walked down a hall with classmates at Mountain Park Elementary School near his home.
Police said the attack was random.
The girl had emergency brain surgery and returned to school before classes let out for summer, school administrators said.
Saturday
February 8th, 2025
9:22PM
