Opening statements are expected tomorrow in the trial of a defendant who allegedly shot a man to death in 1979, admitted to it in 1995, and spent much of the time since then committed to a psychiatric facility.

RICHARD FRANKLIN (D.O.B. 11/20/61), formerly of Brockton, is charged with manslaughter for the May 13, 1979, shooting death of 30-year-old Gregory McDavid on Greenbrier Street in Dorchester. The homicide remained unsolved until Dec. 30, 1995, when Franklin approached a community service officer at his Brockton housing development and said he wanted to get something off of his chest.

Acting out of caution, the officer read Franklin his Miranda rights. After stating he understood those rights and wished to speak without a lawyer, Franklin allegedly told the officer that he had shot and killed a man in Boston while trying to rob him. Franklin allegedly said that the shooting had taken place in 1979 when he was 16 years old.

According to Franklin’s statements to the community service officer and, later, to Boston Police homicide detectives, Franklin walked up to the car of a man he believed to be a drug dealer and pointed a handgun at him. When he saw the man reach for the glove compartment, Franklin said, he thought he was reaching for a weapon. Franklin shot him and ran away.

Details in Franklin’s statements were consistent with those of McDavid’s homicide, including evidence that the victim had attempted to sell marijuana on Greenbrier Street a short time before he was slain. The details were also consistent with the crime scene evidence, eyewitness statements, and the findings of the medical examiner who conducted McDavid’s autopsy more than a decade earlier.

Mental health professionals found Franklin not competent to stand trial in 1998. It was not until seven years later that he was deemed able to assist in his own defense.

A panel of 16 jurors was selected yesterday. Those jurors are expected to take a view of the crime scene tomorrow morning and hear attorneys’ opening statements thereafter.

Assistant District Attorney Ian Polumbaum is prosecuting the case. Franklin is represented by attorney James Coviello. Judge Judith Fabricant is presiding in courtroom 817 of Suffolk Superior Court.