DC Superior Court Judge Todd Edelman ordered the Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) to provide an update on their efforts to restore a homicide defendant’s mental competence on Feb. 6.
In order to stand trial, a defendant must understand the charges against him and be able to help his lawyers.
Alberto Valle-Carranza, 56, is charged with first-degree murder premeditated while armed for his alleged involvement in the fatal stabbing of 31-year-old Reyna Garcia-Lopez, on December 19, 2023, inside an apartment on the 1200 block of 11th Street, NW.
Judge Edelman mentioned that at a prior hearing on Dec. 18, 2025, parties discussed whether Valle-Carranza was mentally competent to stand trial. As a result, Judge Edelman allowed time for a conclusive finding. The judge said Valle-Carranza had many issues including vision loss, deafness, diabetes, mental health, speech, and language deficiencies.
During the hearing, the prosecutor and a psychiatrist from DBH expressed their concerns about the lack of updates they received from DBH on evaluation and treatment efforts for Valle-Carranza. Judge Edelman indicated that little progress was made in the past few months to restore Valle-Carranza’s competence.
The psychiatrist also noted Valle-Carranza was non-compliant with his doctors. For example, Valle-Carranza refused to accept with diabetes care, which adversely impacts his mental health, said the psychiatrist. According to the psychiatrist, DBH disagreed about whether Valle-Carranza needed certain treatments.
Valle-Carranza’s defense attorneys, Julie Swaney and Andrew Ain, said since there were no updates on any treatments or testing happening, the case was questionable without successful restoration.
Given the lack of information, Judge Edelman stated he would file a written order directing DBH to submit a detailed report before March 2 including an outline of their efforts and a management plan to address Valle-Carranza’s medical and mental health needs.
Valle-Carranza was ordered by Judge Edelman to remain at Saint Elizabeth’s Hospital until the next hearing.
Parties are scheduled to reconvene on March 5.
