D’Arcy Deemed Mentally Fit for Trial in Woman’s Slaying

He has described his attorney as being part of a “clique to convict.” He contends that he is the victim of a government conspiracy bent on his execution.

Still, a Superior Court judge said Wednesday that Jonathan D’Arcy is mentally competent to stand trial on charges of torturing and murdering a Tustin bookkeeper in 1993 by dousing her with gasoline after a dispute over a $150 check, then walking away as she was engulfed in flames. Karen Marie LaBorde suffered burns on more than 95% of her body and died shortly after the attack.

Jury selection is expected to start Monday. D’Arcy faces the death penalty if convicted.

He has opted to keep his court-appointed attorney rather than represent himself as he has in the past. He also, without explanation, has vowed a hunger strike.

George A. Peters, D’Arcy’s third and latest attorney, contended during a hearing Wednesday that the 34-year-old former janitor from La Habra has a serious mental disorder that makes him “irrational and incapable of cooperating” with lawyers in assisting with his defense.

Two medical experts testified that D’Arcy suffers from a paranoid condition and is fixated on the belief he is a “persecuted victim of the court system.” Among other things, D’Arcy has refused to undergo tests to evaluate potential mental problems that could be used in his defense, according to testimony.

“This man is not competent. He cannot rationally assist me,” Peters said.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert Molko contended D’Arcy is mentally competent to stand trial and assist in his own defense. “I think he’s got a screw loose, and I think he should listen to an attorney, but I don’t think he’s crazy,” said Dr. Kaushal Sharma, a psychiatrist testifying on behalf of the prosecution.

Superior Court Judge Robert R. Fitzgerald said he found no evidence D’Arcy is suffering from a mental illness that would make him incompetent to stand trial and found the defendant capable of cooperating, even if he doesn’t choose to do so. The judge previously had found D’Arcy mentally fit to stand trial, in 1994 following a 90-day psychiatric evaluation.

Since he was charged, D’Arcy has fired numerous court-appointed attorneys and investigators, and even represented himself for about a year, a rarity in death penalty cases.

Had he been found incompetent, he would have been sent to a state mental hospital until doctors deemed him mentally fit to return to court for trial.

The trial before Fitzgerald is expected to last a month.