Attorney: Accused Santa Fe shooter declared incompetent to stand trial

The teenager charged with capital murder in the Santa Fe High School shooting has been declared incomptent to stand trial by three separate psychiatric experts, his attorney said Monday.

Nick Poehl, one of the defense attorneys representing the accused shooter, Dimitrios Pagourtzis, said his client was evaluated by three experts, one hired by the defense, one neutral expert appointed by state District Judge John Ellisor, and one appointed by the Galveston County district attorney.

These evaluations, which occurred in the last several weeks, came after Poehl filed a motion in August requesting an independent psychiatrist evaluate Pagourtzis to determine whether he is competent to stand trial. Poehl cited “recent observations” and conversations with Pagourtzis, as well as ongoing evaluations by mental health professionals.

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All three experts reached the conclusion that Pagourtzis was not competent to stand trial, and prosecutors will not contest that finding. Pagourtzis will eventually be transferred to a state mental health facility where he will be treated and evaluated for a period of four to six months, putting his forthcoming Feb. 18 trial in Richmond on hold.

“Basically the trial is on hold,” Poehl said. “He has to be sent to a state psychiatric hospital to be treated with a goal towards having him regain competency.”

Poehl said it would be an “ongoing process” to determine which facility will evaluate Pagourtzis and when he will be transferred, in part because of the high-profile nature of the criminal charges.

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Pagourtzis, 19, is charged with capital murder in the shooting rampage that killed 10 people and wounded 13 in May 2018. He is being held in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day at the Galveston County Jail and has undergone psychological evaluations by experts paid for by his defense attorneys while in custody. These evaluations were not intended to determine competency to stand trial, however.

This is a developing story.

nick.powell@chron.com

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