Doctors deem D.C. man fit to stand trial

Two mental health physicians at St. Elizabeths Hospital concluded that a D.C. man charged in the fatal stabbing of his mother in May is competent to stand trial, although the man's attorney disagreed with the diagnosis.

During a hearing Friday in D.C. Superior Court, Christopher Martin's attorney, Dana Page of the District's Public Defender Service, said she wanted additional testing of her client to determine his mental state.

Martin is charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of his mother, Patricia Ann Martin, in their home in the 4200 block of Fourth Street SE. Authorities initially had difficulty determining how many times Martin had been stabbed because of the severe decomposition of her body.

In their report, the St. Elizabeths doctors wrote that they believed Martin had "factual and rational understanding of his charges" and the ability to work with his attorney.

The doctors at the city's public psychiatric facility also wrote that Martin, 24, said several of his family members advised him to seek an insanity defense and that Martin has "voiced anxiety" about serving a long prison term. The doctors wrote that although Martin had received a diagnosis of a mild form of schizophrenia and was on medication, he no longer needed to be hospitalized and could return to the D.C. jail.

Page disputed the findings and asked Judge Lynn Leibovitz to keep her client at the hospital so he could undergo further evaluation. Leibovitz consented and set a follow-up hearing for Sept. 10.