Planned Parenthood Shooter, Robert Lewis Dear Jr., Deemed Incompetent To Stand Trial
Robert Lewis Dear Jr., the gunman who shot up a Planned Parenthood last November, killing three people and injuring nine others, has been deemed incompetent to stand trial by Judge Gilbert Martinez of Colorado’s Fourth Judicial District.
At Dear’s most recent hearing, which took place on Wednesday, Judge Martinez found the Planned Parenthood shooter incompetent to stand trial, writing that his “perceptions and understanding are not rational and are not grounded in reality.” For the time being, Dear will be remanded Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo for treatment, in the hopes that he will eventually be able to stand trial for the November 2015 Planned Parenthood shooting. Dear’s criminal case — he has been charged with 179 counts including eight counts of first degree murder and numerous other charges of attempted murder and assault — will be on hold at least until August 11, when a review of his case is scheduled.
According to the Washington Post, as the Planned Parenthood gunman was being led out of the courtroom, he shouted at Judge Martinez “that’s called prejudiced! Prejudiced! Filthy animal!” This wasn’t the first time Dear had had angry outbursts while in court. During a previous hearing, he had been recorded screaming at both the judge and his lawyers, admitting to his part in the Planned Parenthood shooting, and calling himself a “warrior for babies.”
“I am guilty, there’s no trial. I am a warrior for the babies! Do you know who this lawyer is? He’s the lawyer for the Batman shooter that drugged him all up, and that’s what they want to do to me.”
Judge Martinez made his decision with the help of two state psychologists who have examined Dear in the months leading up to the trial. Both psychologists found the Planned Parenthood shooter to be incompetent and say he suffers from a delusional disorder preventing him from fully understanding the case or having a rational, working relationship with his lawyers.
During two trials, set weeks apart — which the judge sought to help clarify whether he believed the Planned Parenthood gunman was competent enough to stand trial or not — Judge Martinez heard about other delusions of Dear’s, including having told his arresting officers that he believed after the Planned Parenthood shooting he would go to heaven and be thanked “by all the aborted fetuses at the gates of heaven.” The state psychologists testified that they believed Dear’s delusions stemmed from a decades-long belief that the FBI was out to kill him, and that his attorneys were under the thumb of the federal government, only taking on his case for publicity, according to the Denver Post. Other delusions of the Planned Parenthood shooter include the belief that federal agents followed him wherever he went, his family was spying on him, and president Obama funds the Islamic State and plans to eventually declare Martial Law in America.
Accused Planned Parenthood shooter Robert Lewis Dear incompetent to stand trial, judge rules https://t.co/WLcqQeuq4H pic.twitter.com/IfwxNz6FiG
— CNN (@CNN) May 11, 2016
The Planned Parenthood killer will be committed to a mental health facility “for treatment directed toward restoring competency.” Under state law, officials at the mental health facility are to provide Judge Martinez with written reviews of Dear’s progress every 90 days. The first review is scheduled for August.
On November 27, 2015, 57-year-old Robert Lewis Dear Jr. walked into a Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs with eight guns and a home-made ballistic vest. He opened fire, and what ensued was a five-hour long stand off with police that culminated in three deaths — Garrett Swasey, a Colorado Springs police officer; Ke’Arre Marcell Stewart, an Iraq War veteran and father of two; and Jennifer Markovsky, a mother of two. Nine others were injured during the Planned Parenthood shooting, including five police officers and four civilians.
[Andy Cross/The Denver Post via AP, Pool]
