WASHINGTON ? A federal judge on Friday denied a government request for a more thorough and extensive psychiatric evaluation of a man accused of firing shots at the White House in what prosecutors say was an attempt to assassinate President Barack Obama.
The mental state of Oscar Ramiro Ortega-Hernandez, who prosecutors say harbored fantasies of killing the president, has been a critical issue since his arrest last month. A preliminary psychiatric screening already found him competent to stand trial. Prosecutors want another evaluation that conclusively puts to rest any concerns about Ortega's ability to understand the charges against him. A comprehensive evaluation would also strengthen the government's case against any later attempt by defense lawyers to use a mental health defense.
U.S. Magistrate Judge John Facciola said there was currently no evidence suggesting that Ortega is incompetent to stand trial. But he said prosecutors can renew their request as the case moves forward if they believe Ortega's mental health is deteriorating.
"A delusional system does not in and of itself compel the conclusion of a defendant's incompetence," he said.
Federal prosecutors say Ortega bought a gun and more than 1,200 rounds of ammunition in Idaho, where he lived, practiced firing it for months and then drove east with the goal of assassinating Obama. They say Ortega referred to himself as the "modern-day Jesus Christ," perceived Obama to be the antichrist and considers marijuana to be the answer to world peace. He opened fire and sped away, prosecutors say, before being arrested five days later at a Pennsylvania hotel.
Authorities located at least five bullet impact points on the south side of the White House or above the second story, court papers say, and two bullets were recovered from the White House ? including one from a window frame on the Truman Balcony. Obama and his wife, Michelle, were out of town at the time.
Elizabeth Teegarden, a clinical psychologist who interviewed Ortega for 50 minutes after his arrest, said Ortega denied delusional thinking, phobias and having aspirations to harm himself or others. When she asked him about statements in the criminal complaint that he had told others that he wanted to kill the president, he either denied the statements or refused to talk about them.
Ortega's public defender, David Bos, said Ortega not only is able to help in his defense but also "understands highly technical principles."
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