Accused Colorado supermarket shooter deemed mentally incompetent

[AZLD4Candidate]

Source: MSN

DENVER (Reuters) - Psychologists who evaluated a 22-year-old man accused of fatally shooting 10 people at a Colorado grocery store in March have found him incompetent to stand trial, but prosecutors are seeking a second mental health evaluation, court records showed on Monday.

Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder, and dozens of attempted murder and related charges stemming from the March 22 rampage at a King Soopers grocery store in Boulder, Colorado, about 28 miles northwest of Denver.

Prosecutors allege Alissa stormed the supermarket and opened fire with a Ruger AR-556 semi-automatic pistol that he had legally purchased six days before the rampage.

Alissa has been held without bond since his arrest, and last month a judge ordered that he undergo a competency evaluation.

The report by the two court-appointed psychologists has not been released, but their conclusions were set out in a motion filed by prosecutors for a second examination, which defense lawyers object to.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/accused-colorado-supermarket-shooter-deemed-mentally-incompetent/ar-AAPnOd0?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531

---

Short article but it does bother me that the DA's office is psychologist shopping to get the result they want.

[SouthernDem4ever]

1. ok then lock him up in solitary and throw away the key

he can't be trusted around anyone.

[mpcamb]

10. Lock up whoever sold him a firearm.

[jimfields33]

2. Of course. Gun lovers always use that tactic. No surprise.

Still a scumbag. Can’t change that.

[appleannie1]

3. Aren't we all glad Reagan closed all the asylums?

And we should all be jumping for joy that assault weapons are legal for any Tom, Dick or Harry to carry around to play cowboys and Indians with. You don't see this crap happening in other countries a couple times a week.

[Sneederbunk]

4. He will be sent to state mental facility where he will

be pumped full of drugs to make him "competent" then returned to court for trial.

[hlthe2b]

12. Not likely soon. The Colorado Springs abortion clinic shooter STILL has remained assessed as

"incompetent"-- most recently as Sept. 16, 2021 (more than six years later). And... that was in Federal court.

[Hortensis]

13. Thanks for injection of some background information, including

that jurisdiction can be a factor. Does anyone here know CO law on this? A second MHE is vital, and perhaps more by panel consensus; these decisions must be made as scrupulously as possible.

[RobinA]

5. Both Sides

shop for opinions they like, but yeah, it certainly doesn’t boost one’s confidence.

[Turbineguy]

6. But he was mentally competent enough

to buy the gun.

[Aristus]

8. And to know how to load and fire it.

That proves mental competence. Put his murderous ass on trial, convict him, then put him away forever.

[RobinA]

17. Ability To Buy A Gun

is not a measure of competence. The competence issue is a due process issue which is a constitutional issue.

[Aristus]

18. I agree, but only to a point.

Buying a gun and using it to murder people in an effort to mitigate one's staggering failures as a human being is a paralyzingly incompetent thing to do.

But this guy would more easily sell me on the idea that he's mentally incompetent if, instead of murdering human beings, he had instead sat in a corner muttering to himself while drawing stick figures on the wall in crayon.

Prison for life would make some excellent therapy. Slam the cell door and then tell him: "This is the reality you created. Deal with it."

[Sherman A1]

9. Agreed

He needs to stand trial and take responsibility for his actions.

[Hortensis]

14. So? I've had discussions with people crazy as loons.

Obviousy insane for a nontechnical word. Two were both smart and well educated, one especially impressive, and all competently carried on rational discussion. Until it wasn't.

I'm rather shocked at the idea that people incapable of understanding that they've done anything wrong should "take responsibility." TX is famous for executing people who have no idea what's happening or why.

[RobinA]

15. Mentally Ill

is not the same as legally competent/incompetent, although they often get used (wrongly) interchangeably. "Incompetent" means they don't understand the process and can't assist in their defense. Mentally ill means you have a mental illness. You can be seriously mentally ill and be competent and you can be incompetent and not mentally ill. There is some overlap, of course, but they are two different things. If the person is incompetent, the legal process cannot go forward. This is not the same as an insanity defense, which is the whole right from wrong, knew what they were doing bit. If incompetent, you don't even get to the defense.

TX is an abomination. I wish Trump would move there and then we would give it back to Mexico. Not that Mexico doesn't have enough problems.

[Hortensis]

16. True and good for rounding out some of what anyone forming an opinion

should know going in. As it is, none of us knows squat about this man's mental state -- except that he's been initially assessed by a professional or professionals to be mentally incompetent.

I'm fantasizing now about tRump and his mental disorders left to the mercies of TX's legal system when no one has any more use for him, including his "children." So much for that, though. It seems very probable that Mexico's federal standards of care would override today's TX Republicans'.

[tulipsandroses]

7. From past reports, it looks like this guy fell through the cracks

I don’t want to blame his family, but I have not read where they tried to intervene to get him help. Maybe he refused. But it seems like there was a long history indicating that he should have been evaluated for mental health issues. When he attacked another student in high school for no apparent reason, what was done other than to arrest him? There are several accounts about him being paranoid and having anger issues. Then he started shutting down. That seems to be a constant theme said about him.

Again, I don’t know if he refused mental health treatment in the past or not. Just seems like a lot of missed opportunities to get this guy help. Which ultimately lead to this devastating tragedy. All those lives lost. It’s painful. My heart goes out to the victims of this awful tragedy.

More reason we need sensible gun laws to protect people from people that should not have guns. Nobody needs a gun immediately. Waiting periods may keep guns out of their hands.

[hlthe2b]

11. I personally believe there SHOULD be multiple psych evaluations. DA "psych-shopping?"

and what, exactly, do you think the public defender is going to do? No. There should be a consensus agreement among multiple well-respected psych evaluators. Not only for the cause of justice and for the victims but for the perpetrator's long-term well-being--even if it ends up better handling a prison sentence.