Defense attorneys requested that DC Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman find a homicide defendant mentally incompetent to proceed with his case on March 5.
Alberto Valle-Carranza, 56, is charged with first-degree murder premeditated while armed for his alleged involvement in the fatal domestic stabbing of Reyna Garcia Lopez, 31, on the 1200 block of 11th Street, NW on Dec. 19, 2023.
According to court documents, Garcia-Lopez was found unconscious with several stab wounds throughout her body after a domestic disturbance. Valle-Carranza fled the area, was arrested in Michigan City, Indiana and extradited to the District for trial.
The hearing was in regards to Valle-Carranza’s mental competency and whether it can be restored. A defendant must understand the charges against him and have the ability to assist a lawyer in their defense.
Judge Edelman stated that two doctors who testified at a previous hearing agreed there are two main issues regarding facing Valle-Carranza, his hearing ability as well as his communication and language skills.
Valle-Caranza’s attorney, Andrew Ain, argued that “time isn’t going to change anything” and his client is unlikely to ever be restored to competency. Ain based his conclusion on testimony given by a doctor at the last hearing and said Valle-Carranza made no progress since his hearing in December.
The defense asked for a “Jackson finding,” pursuant to Jackson v. Indiana (1972), that established a defendant could only be held for a reasonable period to determine if they will regain competence in the foreseeable future. If the court ordered a Jackson finding, Valle-Carranza would either be civilly committed or released.
The prosecution disagreed that Valle-Carranze had made no progress, stating that restoring mental competency “just takes time” and determining if he needs a hearing aid would help.
A forensic psychologist, who attended the hearing remotely said that if Valle-Carranza’s hearing issues are addressed, his communication and language concerns could be partially resolved. She suggested performing an Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) test to determine if Valle-Carranza needs a hearing aid and what kind of speech therapy would benefit him.
Judge Edelman delayed his decision on the Jackson finding. He requested bi-weekly updates from both parties as well as the forensic psychologist regarding Valle-Carranza’s speech and language therapy and audio progress to keep it “top of mind.”
Parties are scheduled to reconvene on April 24 for another mental observation hearing.
