The ruling keeps Robert Brandon Keller on track to face trial in the 2024 killing of Bruce Dupree in Bulloch County.

STATESBORO, Ga. — Robert Brandon Keller was competent by a Bulloch County judge and will stand trial on murder and robbery charges, even after prosecutors and mental health experts said he removed both of his own eyes and bit off part of his tongue while in jail.

The ruling matters because it clears one of the biggest legal hurdles in a homicide case that has drawn attention across southeast Georgia. Keller, 32, is accused in the Oct. 14, 2024, killing of Bruce Dupree, 43, whose body was found along Interstate 16 in Bulloch County. The court order means the case can continue toward trial unless new motions or evaluations delay it. It also settles, for now, a key question raised by the defense about Keller’s mental condition and whether he can understand the charges and work with his lawyers.

The case began on the evening of Oct. 14, 2024, when authorities responded to Interstate 16 between mile markers 111 and 116 after a 911 crash alert. Officers found Dupree on the shoulder of the road and began treating what first appeared to be a vehicle crash. Investigators later said the injuries were not consistent with a wreck. According to testimony described in later court coverage, Dupree had stab wounds to the head and neck and defensive wounds to his hands. Blood trails and pools of blood were found across the interstate median. Dupree later died. Investigators traced the case to Keller, who was later found near the Patriot Inn off U.S. 301 South at I-16. Authorities said he was taken into custody after a brief foot chase. In early reporting, investigators also said a store employee had seen Keller with blood on his hands and on the cash he used to pay.

A Bulloch County grand jury later indicted Keller on charges that include malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, armed robbery, hijacking a motor vehicle and possession of a knife during the commission of a felony. The indictment alleges that Dupree was killed by being cut or stabbed with a knife or other sharp instrument and that Keller took Dupree’s vehicle and cell phone by force. Keller has also faced separate allegations tied to his time in the Bulloch County Jail. In later court filings described by local reporters, he was accused in a jail case of violent acts involving officers and government property. Those allegations are separate from the murder prosecution. The jail self-harm became central to the competency fight, but prosecutors argued that the conduct happened after the homicide and did not answer the legal question of whether Keller understood the court process.

At a Jan. 27 hearing, two state-employed psychologists gave the court different but related opinions that led to the Feb. 10 order. Dr. Jeremy Gay evaluated Keller for criminal responsibility and said, according to the court’s findings, that Keller was not under a delusional compulsion at the time of the alleged crime and could distinguish right from wrong. Dr. Daniel Fass evaluated Keller’s present ability to stand trial and concluded he was competent. Fass reportedly described Keller during an interview as cooperative and depressed, but not showing signs of a severe persistent mental illness such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder at the time of the evaluation. The judge also cited testimony from two jailers who said Keller told them he was not mentally ill and had claimed to hear voices “to cover his ass.” The court further noted that Keller appeared to follow the hearing and interact appropriately with his attorneys.

The facts of the case have kept public attention on both the homicide itself and the narrow legal standard used in competency disputes. In Georgia, a defendant can have a history of disturbing behavior and still be found competent if he understands the proceedings and can assist in his defense. That is different from an insanity or criminal responsibility claim, which looks at the defendant’s state of mind when the crime happened. Here, the court treated those as separate questions. Dupree, identified in local reporting as a Metter resident and Candler County man, was 43 years old. His death on the interstate shoulder in October 2024 quickly became a major regional case because of the violence described by investigators, the allegation that his car and phone were taken, and the strange and graphic developments that followed after the suspect was jailed.

For now, the court’s ruling leaves Keller in place to face the charges in Superior Court, but key steps still remain before a jury hears the evidence. No trial date had been scheduled in the reports published after the order. The defense could seek additional motions, and prosecutors still must present the full case at trial rather than at a competency hearing. The separate jail-related charges also remain pending. What is no longer unresolved, at least under the Feb. 10 order, is whether Keller can be tried. The judge’s finding means the homicide case can move through the ordinary pretrial process, including hearings on evidence, scheduling and any renewed mental health claims. Until then, the ruling stands as the court’s clearest statement yet on the defendant’s present mental fitness.

The case has left two very different records in public view. One is the legal record, with psychologists, jail staff and a judge describing a defendant they say can understand what is happening in court. The other is the human record left by Dupree’s death. Local obituary reporting described Dupree as a man from Metter who loved animals, gardened and especially liked growing roses. That contrast has sharpened the stakes as the case moves forward. Even with the unusual and disturbing details surrounding Keller’s conduct in jail, the court’s ruling did not weigh sympathy, shock or rumor. It focused on the defendant’s present condition, the testimony of experts and jail witnesses, and what the judge observed in the courtroom while deciding whether the murder case could go on.

The case now remains in the pretrial stage, with Keller still facing the Bulloch County murder charges and no public trial date announced in the reporting that followed the Feb. 10 order.

Author note: Last updated March 24, 2026.