Man acquitted of murder with insanity defense escapes Texas mental hospital

Austin, Texas — A man acquitted by reason of insanity of murder in the 2013 stabbing death of his father in Austin has escaped from a state hospital to which he was committed, authorities said Monday.

Staff at the North Texas State Hospital in Vernon, near the Oklahoma border and 190 miles northwest of Dallas, advised police that Alexander Scott Ervin, 29, was found missing from the hospital shortly after 7:30 a.m. Monday, the Vernon Police Department reported. A review of the hospital's security video revealed that Ervin left his dormitory room about 9 p.m. Sunday and scaled the hospital's 8-foot security fence before heading north on foot about 9:15 p.m.

Ervin was to be considered armed and dangerous, police said.