Woman Accused in SW Idaho Killing Has Mental Illness

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A 24-year-old woman accused in the beating death of another woman at a southwest Idaho halfway house will receive treatment for mental illness rather than go to trial.

KTVB-TV reports that a judge on Wednesday ordered Kayla Teton to remain in the Canyon County Jail until another hearing to determine what facility she'll be sent to for treatment. Police say that on Oct. 25 Teton got a metal bar out of a bathroom and used it to kill 52-year-old Linda Westmoreland at the Port of Hope halfway house in Nampa.

A future hearing will determine whether Teton is sent to an Idaho Department of Health facility for treatment or the Idaho Department of Correction, which can handle more dangerous patients.