Little Rock man accused in road-rage shooting that killed toddler put in hospital

Gary Holmes Sr., 34, (right) faces one count of capital murder and two counts of committing a terrorist act in the death of 3-year-old Acen King (left) in Little Rock on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016.
Gary Holmes Sr., 34, (right) faces one count of capital murder and two counts of committing a terrorist act in the death of 3-year-old Acen King (left) in Little Rock on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016.

Gary Eugene Holmes, accused of killing a toddler last year, is being committed to the Arkansas State Hospital for observation by doctors who are trying to assess his mental health.

Doctors who were assigned to determine whether the 33-year-old is fit to stand trial asked that he be interned at the hospital indefinitely because getting him to cooperate with testing efforts has been like "pulling teeth," according to a letter to Pulaski County Circuit Judge Barry Sims.

The judge ordered Holmes transferred from jail to the State Hospital at a brief hearing Monday.

Holmes faces charges of first-degree murder and committing a terroristic act in the death of 3-year-old Acen Ameer King on Dec. 17 in what police have described as a result of road rage.

The evaluation process includes interviews to determine whether Holmes has a sufficient understanding of the criminal justice system to help his lawyer prepare his defense.

Doctors must also decide whether Holmes has any mental condition that could have compelled him to kill Acen or could have prevented Holmes from understanding the difference between right and wrong when the boy was killed.

The charges carry a potential life sentence. Court proceedings cannot move forward until the judge is satisfied that Holmes is sane.

Holmes' next court appearance is scheduled for July for a report to the judge on the progress of the evaluation, although the defendant could be back in court sooner if doctors can agree on a diagnosis before then.

Michael Simon, the State Hospital's supervising psychologist for forensic services, reported in the letter to the judge that Holmes appeared very depressed when they met and sat with his head down, rarely making eye contact.

Holmes did not appear to be mentally ill or developmentally disabled, Simon wrote, stating that Holmes' responses appeared to be reflective of his personality.

"His answers were typically incorrect (e.g. he described his attorney's role as 'Send me to prison') or evasive (e.g. 'I don't want to talk about that.')," the April 24 letter states.

"It was my impression that he was simply being oppositional and passive-aggressive and that his performance, throughout the evaluation, could be better explained by personality factors rather than mental disease or defect. The evaluation was terminated after about two hours since it became apparent that he would not provide any additional useful information."

Simon requested that Holmes, who has been in jail for almost five months, be committed to the State Hospital after the psychologist reviewed medical records that show Holmes sought counseling in December 2014, complaining of anger issues, suicidal thoughts, paranoia and hearing voices that told him to do things.

Those records show Holmes appeared depressed, Simon wrote.

In January 2015, Holmes was initially diagnosed with schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder and suffering from an earlier head injury. He was prescribed the anti-psychotic Zyprexa and antidepressant Prozac.

In a subsequent diagnosis, in September 2015, Holmes was diagnosed with depressive disorder, with severe marijuana abuse, antisocial personality disorder and the effects of a head injury, the letter states.

He reported continued depression and paranoia in April 2016, with doctors noting that he continued to consume alcohol and marijuana frequently.

In his last counseling appointment in October, about 2½ months before the toddler was fatally shot, Holmes continued to report depression, anger issues and auditory hallucinations, Simon wrote.

"In light of this information, along with his limited participation in this initial evaluation, it is my opinion that further assessment of Mr. Holmes is warranted," Simon's three-page letter states. "Due to the complexities in this case, and the seriousness of his charges, I respectfully request that the court order Mr. Holmes to undergo further evaluation ... on an inpatient basis."

Court records show Holmes was placed on five years of probation in October 2015 after pleading guilty to domestic battery and terroristic threatening for punching his then-girlfriend and threatening to kill her in Jacksonville in 2014.

A condition of his probation was that he continue with mental health treatment and attend anger management classes. He'd also undergone a mental evaluation in that case by state doctors, who found no mental illness.

His diagnosis then, in April 2015, was severe marijuana abuse, antisocial personality disorder, partner relational problems and adjustment disorder.

Acen King was the second of two toddlers shot dead in Little Rock in just under a month over the winter holidays. Ramiya Reed of North Little Rock was killed on South Harrison Street when someone fired into the car she was riding in with her mother, two days before Thanksgiving.

A $40,000 reward for her killer failed to produce an arrest after 5½ months, so the city of Little Rock raised it to $50,000 this past weekend.

Both shootings also endangered other children. Four were in the car with Ramiya on Nov. 22. Acen's infant sister was sitting next to him when he was shot Dec. 17 about 7 miles from the site of the girl's killing.

Holmes surrendered to police Dec. 22, the same day Acen was buried in a funeral that included a procession led by Mickey Mouse, his favorite cartoon character.

Holmes, a sex offender who has done time for armed robbery and shooting a man, is accused of killing Acen by firing a single shot into the car driven by the child's grandmother near the intersection of Mabelvale Cut Off Road and Warren Drive.

Investigators say they have at least one witness who saw Holmes get out of his car, aim at the woman's car and pull the trigger.

The grandmother told investigators that she didn't realize her car had been hit by a bullet or that the boy had been fatally wounded, and kept driving until she got to a shopping center where she was meeting relatives.

Metro on 05/09/2017

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