Capitol Shooting Suspect Ruled Incompetent
A federal judge ruled Thursday that Russell Eugene Weston Jr., the man accused of killing two Capitol Police officers last summer, is incompetent to stand trial.
U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan ordered the Federal Bureau of Prisons to place Weston, 42, in a facility that offers mental health services for a “reasonable period of time, not to exceed four months.”
Sullivan set a Sept. 9 conference to evaluate Weston’s treatment and its effect on his competence.
The judge said Weston “suffers from a mental disease or defect that renders him incapable of understanding the nature and consequences of the proceedings against him.” The judge also said Weston is unable to aid in his defense.
Weston is charged with murdering Capitol Police officers John M. Gibson and Jacob J. Chestnut in the Capitol on July 24, 1998. He has not entered a plea.
Court documents unsealed by the judge Thursday showed that psychiatrist Sally C. Johnson believes Weston is a paranoid schizophrenic and not competent to stand trial.
“He believes that he is the commander in chief of the Armed Forces . . . in control of time and time reversal,” she wrote.
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