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| Sheley Found Fit to Stand Trial, But Mental Competency Still Questioned |
POSTED: 2:50pm 12/22/08 The Sterling man accused of murders in two states, but is being tried for the alleged bludgeoning death of a Galesburg man, has been found fit to stand trial, with a twist of sorts.
Knox County Circuit Court Judge James Stewart made the determination Monday in the case of 29-year old Nicholas Sheley -- facing ten counts of first-degree murder, and seven other felonies, in connection to the death of 65-year old Ronald Randall.
Stewart made the ruling after reading a report completed last month by Springfield-based psychiatrist, Doctor Terry Killian. Both the prosecution and defense concurred with the filings.
That's allowed for Sheley's initial motion to have Karlin and Knox County Public Defender Jim Harrell fired, and to either have them replaced with ineffective counsel or represent himself.
Karlin has already filed a response stating that Chicago-based neuropsychologist Doctor Robert Hanlon has found that Sheley has a condition that would find him mentally unfit to represent himself.
Stewart admitted that the issue of being found mentally unfit to represent himself is a relatively new one in terms of Illinois Supreme Court rules, and that there's no precedent for determining this, meaning that the court will have to, in his words, "invent" a procedure.
Stewart asked Sheley if he wanted to have the option of a separate attorney to represent him on the question of his mental competency to represent himself, to which Sheley said he did.
The prosecution, after being given 21 days to file responses to Sheley's motion, asked for 45 days, but then were given 30.
Stewart set a January 23rd deadline for filing responses, and then scheduled a Case Management Conference for January 30th.
There is still another conference scheduled for New Years Eve.
(Nicholas Sheley. WGIL News File Photo.) |
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| 12 22 08 by Newsroom |
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