Mental exam ordered for man charged with murdering Wichita QuikTrip security guard
The man charged with murdering a Wichita QuikTrip security guard last month will receive a competency exam after his defense lawyer called his mental health into question in a June 8 motion filed with the court.
Attorney Jeremy Koop wrote in the motion that Laroy Monzell West “has had a history of mental health issues and is currently exhibiting behaviors consistent with significant mental illness.” He added that West “may be incompetent to stand trial” in connection with events tied to the May 5 fatal shooting of 39-year-old Will Robinson and said that West’s competency “should be examined by the appropriate mental health agency.”
Robinson, a former cop, husband and father of two known for helping homeless people who frequent the Murdock and Broadway convenience store, died on May 7 after languishing in the hospital for two days. West reportedly shot Robinson in the face with a handgun after he was escorted off of convenience store property for “being disruptive and loud inside the store” including playing music on a small speaker, according to a probable cause affidavit released by the court last month. West was arrested and booked into jail on May 7.
Sedgwick County District Court Judge Bruce Brown on Tuesday granted the defense attorney’s request and ordered Sedgwick County’s community mental health center, Comcare, to perform the competency evaluation, court records show. West’s criminal case will be on hold until he can “understand the nature and purpose of the proceedings” against him and help with his own defense, the judge’s order says.
Comcare is supposed to report back to the court and provide an opinion about West’s mental status within 60 days, according to the document.
West, 41, of Wichita, is charged with second-degree murder, four counts of aggravated assault and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in connection with the May 5 shooting and an incident where he allegedly threatened two men with a gun outside of a North Broadway Mexican restaurant on March 28. He remains in the Sedgwick County Jail in lieu of $250,000 bond.
This story was originally published June 16, 2021 at 4:13 AM.
