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Victim’s family angry after killer gets unsupervised leave

Posted at 11:30 PM, Apr 22, 2014
and last updated 2014-04-23 06:58:28-04

Virginia Beach, Va. - Being deemed insane is what got Aaron Patterson out of jail for murdering his neighbor Keith Chapin.

He was sent to Eastern State Hospital; now the restrictions are easing on Patterson.
He's set to get out and do whatever he wants, unsupervised, once a week.

"Where anything could happen and as before any trigger could offset this person," Billy Mittlestadt, Chapin's uncle.

Chapin was home Christmas night 2009 at his Ocean Lakes home. Patterson lived next door and went over to Chapin's house to ask for a beer. Chapin obliged, but wouldn't let Patterson into his home.

This angered Patterson, so he shot Chapin multiple times then shot Chapin's brother Jonathan, who fortunately was able to survive.

"There's a lot of unsettled questions here, and I think more has to be taken into consideration than just what this individual wants," Mittlestadt said.

Patterson is currently in Williamsburg at Eastern State Hospital. He'll soon be out for 12 hours unsupervised four times a month. The court ruled he was insane and when he shot Chapin, he couldn't tell between right and wrong.

"Maybe out but he must be supervised," Mittlestadt said. "I cannot understand how anyone could allow this person that's taken another life and injured my nephew is allowed to go unsupervised for any amount of time.