Psychotic man who killed mum avoids jail

A Melbourne man who was "severely psychotic" when he killed his mother will be sent to a mental health facility instead of jail.

On Thursday in the Supreme Court of Victoria, Stephen Bailey, 36, was found not guilty of brutally murdering his 59-year-old mother by reason of mental impairment.

Justice Stephen Kaye said Bailey, a former VFL player and "fitness freak", was incapable of reasoning whether his conduct was wrong.

He relied in part on evidence from a psychiatrist who said Bailey's schizophrenia was active at the time of the murder.

Penelope Bailey's body was discovered in a creek bed in Donvale in 2015, three days after her son was arrested when he was seen running through traffic in his underwear.

The details of her injuries have been suppressed.

Bailey will reappear in court on June 22.