A Georgia man who gouged out his own eyes while in police custody has been cleared to face trial for murder. Court documents filed this week reveal that two psychologists have officially deemed 32-year-old Robert Brandon Keller competent to stand trial, despite the severe self-inflicted injuries he sustained following his arrest.
The case began on October 14, 2024, when first responders discovered 43-year-old Bruce Dupree on the side of a road. Dupree had been stabbed multiple times and died shortly after emergency crews attempted to save his life.
Authorities shifted their focus to Keller after a liquor store employee reported a suspicious customer. According to multiple media reports, Keller had blood on his hands and allegedly used blood-stained cash to pay for his items.
He was subsequently arrested and charged with two counts of murder, armed robbery, hijacking a motor vehicle, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, and possession of a weapon during the commission of a crime.
READ: U.S. On Edge: Terror Threat Mounts As DHS Funding Stalled
While being held in custody, Keller’s behavior took a gruesome turn. Court records show he gouged out both of his eyes and bit off a portion of his tongue. The severity of these injuries raised immediate questions regarding his mental state and his ability to participate in his own defense.
However, medical experts who evaluated Keller concluded that he meets the legal requirements for competency. Dr. Jeremy Gay, one of the psychologists assigned to the case, stated that Keller “was not suffering from either a delusional compulsion at the time of the crime or an inability to distinguish right and wrong at the time of the crime.”
During a follow-up analysis in April 2025, Dr. Daniel Fass noted that Keller’s intellectual functioning remained intact. Fass observed that Keller’s ability to navigate court-related questioning was “much better than a lot of the people” typically evaluated by the state.
Testimony from jail staff supported these findings; one jailer testified during a hearing that Keller “was not mental” and claimed the suspect admitted to “hearing voices to cover his ass.”
In an order dated February 10, both Fass and Gay officially ruled Keller competent. While the legal hurdles regarding his mental fitness have been cleared, a specific trial date has not yet been set on the court calendar.
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
