Former Turnstile guitarist Brady Ebert has been ruled mentally incompetent to stand trial in an attempted murder case where he is accused of striking the father of his former bandmate with a vehicle, according to a court ruling delivered on Sept. 22.
A Courtroom Eruption and a Montgomery County Ruling
Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Karla Smith handed down the ruling during a hearing, determining that 34-year-old Brady Ebert poses a danger to himself and others. The legal proceedings quickly devolved into chaos when Ebert began shouting in the courtroom, insisting he had fired his attorney, Mark Sobel, earlier in the month.
Ebert loudly protested his representation, asking why Sobel was present and labeling the entire legal action an extreme miscarriage of justice. He also accused local police of securing an illegal warrant before law enforcement officers escorted him out of the courtroom.
Following the disruptive outburst, Judge Smith ordered Ebert to be held in the custody of the Maryland Department of Health until his competency can be reassessed. A competency reevaluation is currently scheduled for Jan. 19 next year.
Mark Sobel addressed the outcome outside of court, stating, “Hopefully, he’ll get the proper treatment for his competency to be restored, so we can proceed to trial in this case,” as reported by CBS News Baltimore and The Baltimore Banner.
The Charges and the March 2026 Incident in Silver Spring
The criminal case stems from a violent confrontation on Timberlake Drive in Silver Spring, Maryland, back in March 2026. Investigators state that Ebert drove to the home of William Yates, honked his car horn, and yelled obscenities before returning to strike the man with his vehicle in the driveway.
William Yates—the father of Turnstile singer Brendan Yates—suffered severe trauma to his legs, including a broken leg, and required hospitalization. In May, a Montgomery County grand jury upgraded the charges against Ebert to include first-degree attempted murder, an offense that carries a potential life sentence.
During a prior hearing on Sept. 3, which followed Sobel raising significant concerns about his client’s mental state, Ebert declared his innocence. “I did not commit a crime,” he told the court, asserting that he felt perfectly competent while claiming the police report was entirely fabricated.
History With Turnstile and Subsequent Fallout
The legal fallout underscores a parting of ways between the musician and the band. Ebert was with Turnstile from their start in 2010 and appeared on their first three studio albums.
Turnstile officially severed ties with Ebert in 2022. In a public statement following the split, the band cited a consistent pattern of harmful behavior affecting the members, the community, and Ebert himself. They noted that they had quietly endured baseless tirades in the years following his departure, which ultimately escalated into threats leading up to the incident.
Legal Framework Governing Competency in Maryland Courts
Because Judge Smith accepted the clinical findings that Ebert is currently not competent to stand trial, the criminal prosecution is paused. The mandate requiring treatment through the Maryland Department of Health is designed to restore competency.
Should medical professionals successfully treat Ebert and the court subsequently finds his competency restored, the second-degree and first-degree attempted murder charges will move forward toward trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court.
