The man charged in last year’s deadly shooting at a Midtown Atlanta medical building has been found not competent to stand trial.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Eric Dunaway issued the recent order, finding that Deion Patterson cannot be tried “at this time” and must be committed to the care of the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.
“After consideration of all the medical and psychological evidence, the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant is incapable of understanding the nature of the charges against him or of understanding the object of the proceedings against him and is incapable of rendering his attorney the proper assistance in his defense,” the order states.
Patterson was taken into custody May 3, 2023, after an eight-hour manhunt that concluded in Cobb County. He allegedly shot and killed Amy St. Pierre and injured four other women at the Northside Medical Midtown building.
Patterson was indicted in June 2023 and charged with murder, felony murder, four counts of attempted murder, five counts of aggravated assault, aggravated battery, criminal damage to property, theft by taking and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Defense attorneys presented expert testimony from a psychologist during Patterson’s competency hearing. According to the order, the psychologist testified that Patterson was “unable to remember details about the incident, describing events as a blur, only able to remember places but not the details of what he did or the actions of others who were present.”
“It was the opinion of the psychologist that the defendant was not competent to stand trial. The state failed to put forward any evidence challenging said opinion,” the order states.
Once in the custody of the Department of Behavioral Health, Patterson’s mental capacity is to be re-evaluated.
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office
The department must report its findings within 90 days, deciding if there is a substantial probability that he will “attain mental competency to stand trial in the foreseeable future,” the judge said.
If Patterson is found to be mentally incompetent but there is a good chance he will become competent at some point, the department must keep him in custody and continue to treat him for up to nine months.
Investigators believe Patterson, who was a patient at Northside Medical, was turned away when he arrived late for an appointment and then shot the women. His mother told The Associated Press that her son was having a “mental break.” Patterson was discharged from the U.S. Coast Guard in January 2023, but the reason is unclear.
He is the second high-profile metro Atlanta suspect to be found not competent to stand trial this year. In June, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Shukura Ingram issued an order that Raissa Kengne, who was charged in an August 2022 Midtown shooting spree that resulted in the death of two men, was not competent to be tried in her case.
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