Second mental exam set for Fort Smith suspect in Mercy lockup | Arkansas Democrat Gazette

FORT SMITH — A second psychiatric examination by the same doctor is scheduled next week for a man arrested in connection with an incident that led to an hours-long quarantine at Mercy Hospital Fort Smith in July.

John K. West, 34, of Fort Smith, was determined in September to be competent to understand the proceedings against him and to assist his attorney in his own defense, according to Sebastian County Circuit Court documents.

Court records show West was again at the Sebastian County jail and again at the Sebastian County jail on Dec. 6 to determine whether he understood criminal liability. It shows that he will undergo a mental evaluation by Jason Beaman.

West plans to plead lack of criminal responsibility as part of his defense, defense attorney Tyson McDougal said in court documents filed Oct. 31.

McDougal said West’s mental illness and defects made his conduct incompatible with the requirements of the law.

On Nov. 4, Circuit Judge Gunner R. DeLay ordered the review, according to court records. West is scheduled to be arraigned in DeLay’s court on December 9.

West faces charges of commercial burglary, theft of property worth more than $1,000, and damaging (violent conduct or significant disruption) the operation of a vital public facility, according to court documents.

He claimed his innocence and remained in jail Thursday on $50,000 bail.

He was arrested as an intruder

Reports of a possibly armed intruder caused the hospital to be quarantined on the morning of July 22 and drew reaction from the Fort Smith Police Department and some other law enforcement agencies.

Police arrested West after finding him hiding in a corner behind poster boards in a training classroom at the hospital, according to a Fort Smith police report.

West had a black plastic water gun with black electrical tape around the handle, police said.

Police said West pointed the gun at a security guard when confronted about his presence on the premises. He also had a doctor’s tablet, laptop and other valuables belonging to Mercy employees, according to police.

West was out on bail when the incident occurred following his arrest on July 10 in connection with trespassing.

FIRST EXAM

On August 9, Beaman conducted a nearly two-hour evaluation of West to determine whether he could assist in his own defense at trial.

According to the coroner’s report, West reported a history of mental illness and drug abuse, including alcohol, marijuana, opioids including heroin and fentanyl, and methamphetamine.

West said he has been incarcerated twice in his life: for burglary at 21 and for drugs at 24, according to the report.

In the report, West told Beaman that he had been admitted to an unknown psychiatric facility in Louisiana the previous year, where he was diagnosed with “schizophrenia, bipolar, ADHD.”

“Mr. West knew what he was accused of. He was able to disclose the details of his case, including that he was allegedly carrying a gun,” Beaman wrote in the report. “When asked what would happen if he was found guilty, he gave a reasonable answer.”

Beaman diagnosed West with an unspecified intellectual disability, as well as alcohol use disorder, opioid use disorder and methamphetamine use disorder. The doctor’s opinion was that West was not faking symptoms of mental illness, according to the report.

“I am of the opinion, with reasonable medical certainty, that Mr. West is capable of understanding the nature and objectives of the proceedings against him and of assisting his counsel in his own defence,” Beaman said in the report.

‘CRIMINAL LIABILITY’

According to court documents, the examination by Beaman will be to determine whether West was able to understand whether he had broken the law during the incident that led to his arrest.

Specifically, the evaluation must determine whether West can establish a defective mental state necessary to constitute an element of the alleged crime.

Under Arkansas law, the test will focus on whether it prevented West from having “the capacity to appreciate the culpability of his conduct.”

The criminal liability law also states that the auditor must determine whether West “brought his conduct into compliance with the requirements of the law.”