A high stakes legal fight is underway in Seattle over whether the man accused of killing Central District business owner and youth coach D’Vonne Pickett Jr. is mentally fit to stand trial. A competency proceeding opened Thursday, with defense attorneys arguing he is too mentally ill to help with his own case, while prosecutors counter that it is a strategic attempt to delay a murder trial.
Case background
Ashton Lefall is accused of shooting Pickett outside The Postman on Oct. 19, 2022, in what prosecutors and neighbors have described as a targeted attack. Pickett, a former Seattle University basketball standout, co founded the neighborhood shipping and mailbox shop. The original reporting and charging documents detailed the timeline and related incidents leading up to the shooting, as reported by KIRO 7.
Defense’s arguments
Defense attorneys told the judge that Lefall has untreated schizophrenia and does not have the capacity to participate in his own defense. They said he believes his lawyers are “God’s robots,” which…..