DETROIT (AP) – A man accused of planting a bomb outside of a Detroit federal building four years ago may never stand trial despite extraordinary efforts to improve his mental health.
Two courts allowed the government to forcibly medicate Gary Mikulich, but he’s still not mentally competent for trial. The issue now is whether he will stay locked up indefinitely because of his possible threat to the public.
The 2011 incident embarrassed the government. A Husky-brand tool bag holding the explosive was left outside the McNamara Building, which is the local home of the FBI and other agencies. It was brought inside by a security guard but treated as lost property and stashed under a lobby desk.
Three weeks passed before the bag was X-rayed and destroyed at an island in the Detroit River.
“It wasn’t the type of bomb that was going to do damage to the building, but there was a lot of shrapnel,” said Andy Arena, who was head of the FBI in Detroit at the time. “We’re very lucky someone didn’t blow their hands off or head off. It was a wake-up call.”