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Baseball Bat Attack Suspect Not Competent For Trial

Judge Brian J. Fischer ruled Tuesday in Superior Court that Neil Amendola, who is charged with using a baseball bat to attack an old family friend last month, is not competent to stand trial at this time.

The family friend, William Stewart, 58, a former Branford police officer, arrived at the Amendola home on Saturday, March 12, after his wife, Leslie, received a phone call from Neil’s mother about problems at the house. Both women taught at the John B. Sliny Elementary School and were at the time of the assault close friends. 

Stewart remains in serious condition at Yale- New Haven Hospital, more than a month after he was admitted, a hospital spokesman said Tuesday. Stewart sustained severe blows to his head and his body.

After holding an hour-long hearing that centered on a psychiatric evaluation of Amendola, Judge Fischer said he found based on a preponderance of the evidence that Amendola is not at this time competent to stand trial because he does not understand the charges against him and cannot assist his attorney in his defense, the two prongs of the competency statute. At his first court appearance last month, Michael Dolan, his attorney, said his client was unable to communicate with him.

There is a substantial likelihood that he will be restored to competency, the judge said from the bench. He then placed Amendola, 36, in a psychiatric hospital for the next 60 days. He is expected to be sent to the Connecticut Valley Hospital, a psychiatric facility in Middletown. He is due back in court on June 13.

It is not yet known what triggered the violent attack on the morning of March 12. One theory is that Stewart was asked to help fix their family’s garage door, which police believe Amendola broke the night before when he backed out without first opening the door. Another police theory is that Stewart was summoned to the Amendola home because Neil Amendola was having problems. 

Amendola is charged with first degree assault, a class B felony, punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He was also charged with interfering with a police officer after a later, violent altercation in the lock-up took place. 

Dr. Christopher T. Raczynski, a psychiatrist at the Yale University School of Medicine, testified Tuesday that he had conducted a three-hour examination of Amendola on April 7. He told the court he examined the police reports and interviewed Amendola’s attorney, uncle and sister. He did not interview Amendola’s mother, who was present in the house when the attack took place. With the defendant’s permission he was allowed to examine other documents except for a prior psychiatric evaluation undertaken some time ago.

As the doctor spoke Amendola sat quietly in a tan prison suit. He appeared more focused than he had at his arraignment last month. Dr. Raczynski told the judge Amendola has been given anti-psychotic drugs. Asked by Dolan on direct examination if Amendola understood the charges against him, Dr. Raczynski said: I don’t believe he does.” Asked if he could assist counsel in his defense, the doctor said not at this time.” Amendola’s illness is at a psychotic level, he added.

Meetings between Amendola and family members and his attorney were difficult because there was no communication,” Dr. Raczynski testified. He would mouth words but not articulate them.” 

Dr. Raczynski said Amendola would not disclose to him his date of birth or home address because he did not want his identity stolen. This reaction, the psychiatrist said, was the first indication Amendola might be suffering from paranoia.

When it got to the issue of disorderly conduct and a subsequent blow-up at the Branford police station, Amendola became agitated, the psychiatrist said. He said he was afraid of the police officers. There was considerable upset; he had trouble moving on from this conversation.”

Dr. Raczynski said it would take a long time for Amendola to respond to questions, at least two minutes in one instance, and that at certain points he became locked in his thought process, a stoppage where one is not thinking at all. This, the psychiatrist said, was a clear sign of serious mental illness. He said he did not make a diagnosis of Amendola. His was more like a bed-side visit.”

At one point during the hour long hearing, Dolan asked the judge for a quick court break for his client. The court is aware,” said Dolan, of his client’s medical problem.” Amendola wears a colostomy bag. A quick recess was held. 

Under cross-examination, Assistant State’s Attorney Maxine Wilensky sought to show that Amendola was competent, that in the first two hours of the interview he understood the charges against him. Dr. Raczynski conceded that in the earlier part of the interview process that was true.

Wilensky sought to show that Amendola was college educated and understood how the court process worked. She noted that he did well in the first two hours of the examination, understanding the charges against him. She did not dispute that by the third hour, he was regressing, but she suggested a reason: There was a lot of information thrown at him.” 

As for his being unable to communicate with Dolan, Wilensky said she was obviously not aware of their conversations. Connecticut law requires that both prongs of the competency statute be met — a defendant needs to understand the charges and assist in his defense. 

In summing up, Dolan said that as Amendola’s attorney, he does not have the ability to help in his defense. He is not competent and he is showing symptoms of psychosis.”

In the end, the judge ruled in accordance with the psychiatrist’s opinion.

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