SANTA PAULA : Mental State of Murder Suspect Questioned

The attorney for a transient accused of murdering a Santa Paula ranch foreman last month expressed doubts Friday about the defendant’s mental competency.

A court hearing is scheduled Monday to appoint a psychiatrist to evaluate whether Jose Luis Gonzalez, 23, is mentally able to cooperate with his attorney and help plan his defense.

Gonzalez is charged with murder in the May 14 death of Rosario de la Cruz, 47, who was shot four times in the chest as he stood in his Santa Paula home. Attorneys said Friday that De la Cruz told his wife just before he died that it was Gonzalez, a longtime family friend, who had shot him.

Deputy Dist. Atty. James D. Ellison said his office had a psychiatrist examine Gonzalez shortly after his arrest, and the claim that the defendant does not understand the charges against him comes as no surprise.

“I think there’s a serious question as to whether he’s mentally competent at this time,” Ellison said.

Gonzalez, dressed in a blue jail uniform, appeared disheveled but happy in court Friday while Deputy Public Defender Douglas W. Daily expressed doubts about his client’s mental state.

On earlier occasions, he has smiled and waved at the courtroom audience.

“His behavior is not because he is trying to be funny or he’s thumbing his nose at the system,” Daily said outside court. “He really doesn’t understand what is going on here.”

A court hearing to determine Gonzalez’s mental competency will he held in a few weeks, Ellison said. If he is found incompetent to stand trial, Gonzalez will be placed in a mental facility until he understands the nature of the criminal charges against him.