A Pulaski County circuit judge has ordered an intellectually disabled murder suspect to undergo a third session of therapy at the State Hospital, saying state doctors have not convinced him that the man is competent to stand trial.
State doctors have three times in the past year determined Corey Dewan Brooks, 26, to be fit for trial. Their most recent determination came in a report submitted to the court in December after Brooks had been in court-ordered therapy for about nine months at the hospital.
But Brooks' attorney, Bobby Digby, disputed that those findings showed Brooks was ready for trial. He noted that the doctors say Brooks doesn't even know Digby's name even though he has been Brooks' lawyer for more than a year.
Measured against other defendants of similar intelligence, Brooks' demonstrated knowledge of court procedure in only in the 53rd percentile, the doctors found -- another significant indicator that he remains incompetent for trial given his long-term diagnosis of mild mental retardation, Digby said.
The lawyer said the report shows that Brooks still does not grasp the necessary legal concepts required for him to be deemed competent for trial, particularly since the findings say Brooks struggles with abstract reasoning.
Judge Herb Wright, who has the final decision on whether Brooks is competent to stand trial, sided with Digby at a Jan. 30 hearing.
"I think Mr. Brooks can learn it," Wright told prosecutors and state doctors. "I just don't find him quite fit yet."
The judge said Brooks does not appear to be able yet to assist his attorneys sufficiently in preparing for trial. Wright said he's particularly concerned that Brooks does not have an adequate understanding of how the justice system operates and what the stakes are at trial.
The Little Rock man, charged with capital murder, is accused of shooting his girlfriend, Yolanda Renee Whitfield, 26, to death in front of his mother after a drunken argument about their relationship and tacos at his family home on West 28th Street in June 2015. Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence.
At last week's hearing, the judge said the defendant did not appear to fully understand his rights.
Wright said Brooks, who did not testify, could be called on during trial to make a quick decision about whether to waive or invoke those rights. Typically, defendants' rights come into play at trial when they have to decide whether to testify.
Wright said that state doctors who are saying Brooks sufficiently understands his rights and court procedure have not shown him enough proof that Brooks is competent to make decisions at trial, particularly if he has to make them during the fast-paced give-and-take of a murder trial.
The judge's ruling means that Brooks, who has been in the State Hospital for about a year, will remain there for up to five months more while he continues a therapy program designed to educate defendants about court procedure.
Court records show that doctors initially deemed Brooks' incompetent in a February 2016 report that led to his stay at the hospital for further treatment and study.
By May, doctors reported that he had learned enough about court procedure that he met the threshold for competency, but the judge was unconvinced and ordered the State Hospital in September to keep him in the therapy program.
According to police reports, Whitfield, Brooks' girlfriend of about 18 months, died within an hour of the June 2015 shooting. Brooks' mother, Teresa Ticey, called 911.
Ticey told police that when she heard the couple's argument turn physical, she went into the room and got between them.
Whitfield punched her at least twice, Ticey said, and Brooks started shooting, telling the woman, "Don't hit my mom."
He fired at least five shots, then walked out while Ticey called for help, reports said. Investigators said they found the weapon in the driveway but could not immediately find Brooks.
Brooks told a detective who called him to ask him to surrender that he had done nothing wrong.
The U.S. Marshals Service's fugitive task force tracked Brooks down two days after the slaying and arrested him during a traffic stop on Fair Park Road.
Metro on 02/08/2017