FREDERICTON, New Brunswick – Relatives of a New Brunswick man whose head was severed in a grisly murder two years ago are furious that the trial of his accused killer has once again been delayed.

Family members and friends of murder victims Fred Fulton and Verna Decarie were stunned Friday when the trial of 24-year-old Gregory Despres was once again put on hold to allow for additional psychiatric assessment of the accused killer.

Despres has been on trial since early January for the brutal slaying of the 74-year-old Fulton and his 70-year-old wife, Verna Decarie, who were found dead in their Minto home on April 25, 2005.

Both victims had been repeatedly stabbed and Fulton had been decapitated. His severed head was found in a pillowcase under the kitchen table.

The emotion of the trial boiled over on Friday as Crown prosecutors explained to Justice Judy Clendening that there was a mix-up following Despres’ last 60-day psychiatric assessment and no report had been filed with the court.

The only psychiatric report received by the court was one arranged for by the defense, which the prosecution does not accept.

After the court adjourned, a tearful Marilyn Richardson, Fulton’s sister, stormed up to prosecutors Paul Hawkins and Cameron Gunn to complain about the delay.

“You’ve had two years and you’ve done nothing,” Richardson said, fighting tears.

To make matters worse for the relatives, the next court appearance for Despres is scheduled for April 24, when a full psychiatric report on Despres will be addressed.

It’s believed Fulton and Decarie were killed on April 24, 2005 – a painful anniversary for the family.

“We don’t want to be sitting here at a trial on the 24th, the anniversary of the day Fred was murdered,” said Fulton’s brother-in-law, Marven Richardson.

“I’m hurting for all of the family. It’s really sad that our justice system is as crazy as it is.”

Despres’ first-degree murder trial was stopped on Feb. 1 after he delivered a 10-minute courtroom rant about al-Qaida, former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and something he called the “Super Space Patrol.”

Despres underwent the court-ordered 60-day psychiatric assessment after his lawyer, Ed Derrah, asked the judge for the evaluation.

After Derrah asked for the psychiatric assessment, Despres stood and told the judge he had an air force pilot’s license, stressing that it was not from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Despres then said he wanted to fire his lawyer because he had worked for Saddam and was an al-Qaida terrorist.

Despres stood up again in court Friday to remind Clendening – who is hearing the case alone – that he still wants to fire his lawyer.

Standing stiffly at attention as he does when he’s addressing the court and sporting a newly shaved head, Despres said he wants to represent himself.

Clendening told Despres she would hear his motion on April 24.

“You will have to have strong arguments for me to release counsel at this point in the trial,” she told Despres.

In another outburst on the day the trial was stopped, Despres objected to the length of the assessment, saying any evaluation that took longer than five days would be an attempt to gather espionage, and that he could be forced to testify under the rules of the “Super Space Patrol.”

“I’m not a spy, I’m a pilot,” Despres blurted in the packed courtroom.

Despres was arrested in Massachusetts on the same day the bodies of Fulton and Decarie were found.

The trial has focused on gruesome details of the crime scene in the Fulton home, and how bloody prints in the home matched the boots seized from Despres.

Other testimony showed that DNA in blood found on items carried by Despres when he crossed the U.S.-Canada border matched Fulton’s blood.

Despres, who has dual Canadian and U.S. citizenship, was allowed to enter the United States on April 25, 2005, despite bizarre behavior at the border crossing in Calais, Maine.

He described himself as a marine sniper and an assassin with 700 kills to his credit, and was carrying a homemade sword, a knife, a chain saw, pepper spray, a hatchet and brass knuckles, all of which were confiscated by U.S. border guards.

Several guards testified that they could not detain Despres because he had a valid U.S. passport.