VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WVEC) - The man convicted of poisoning his ex-girlfriend on Valentine's Day in 2017 was back in court Wednesday.
A judge decided to reject the Virginia Beach Sheriff's Office's petition to force-feed 30-year-old Joseph Merlino III. 13News Now reporter Ali Weatherton talked to Merlino about the force-feeding and his trial.
"This is a huge mistake for justice, and the wrong person is sitting in jail right now," said Joseph Merlino. "There is no evidence linking me to anything, okay."
Merlino said he plans to appeal, but he still has to sit in jail. He said for about 80 days he's been on a hunger strike. He said the hunger strike is not to commit suicide, however, he wouldn't give a specific reason for the hunger strike.
"If I wanted to die, if I wanted to kill myself, which is what they claim, I would stop drinking entirely," Merlino said.
On Wednesday, a Virginia Beach Judge ruled Joseph Merlino could not be force-fed inside the jail. He said Merlino is capable of making that decision on his own.
"It's a huge victory, not only for me but for people that are standing up for their philosophy's," said Merlino.
Sheriff Ken Stolle said since Merlino's hunger strike, he's been getting around the clock care. Stolle said moving forward, Merlino won't be in confinement and will not get Gatorade.
"Doctors going in there, doing checks, medical people going in every half hour and checking," Stolle said. "I don't have the resources to maintain that and it's not fair. It's not fair to the public to spend their dollars on someone who wants to cause these problems."
Merlino said he's glad medical staff cannot force feed him.
"He's taking all that away from me. He's not doing any checks on me ok, he canceled all that. So does he really care about someone's health? No, he cares about his own philosophy in the matter that we are subjects to him," said Merlino.
13News Now Reporter Ali Weatherton asked Merlino now that he won't be allowed to have Gatorade, will he eat?
"I don't know. We will find out. We will tell as we go along. Eating isn't the point here," said Merlino.
Sheriff Stolle said his number one goal is to keep the inmates safe and healthy. Merlino will stay in the jail until his formal sentencing on September 26th.
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