The man charged with killing 10 people in the 2021 Boulder King Soopers shooting is showing symptoms of schizophrenia, which is keeping him from being found competent to stand trial, according to prosecutors.
Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 22, remains incompetent to stand trial, Boulder District Court Judge Ingrid Bakke ruled again Friday. It’s “reasonably likely” that Alissa can be restored to competency, she said.
Alissa is charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder, 47 counts of attempted first-degree murder, one count of first-degree assault, 10 counts of felony possession of a prohibited large-capacity magazine, and 47 crime-of-violence sentence-enhancers in connection to the March 22, 2021, shooting.
For more than a year, Alissa has been held at the state hospital in Pueblo to receive treatment so the case against him can proceed.
Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty in court Friday requested a forensic neuropsychological exam by a doctor from outside the state hospital to determine whether the schizophrenia symptoms Alissa is exhibiting render him incompetent.
Alissa’s defense attorney objected to the request and told Bakke that allowing prosecutors to select a doctor to examine Alissa would violate her client’s civil rights.
Bakke will decide whether to grant the prosecution’s request. If she grants it, she can determine how to select the doctor to perform the exam.
Bakke formally declared Alissa incompetent to proceed in December 2021 following evaluations from four doctors who all found he was not capable of assisting in his own legal defense.
The families of the 10 people shot and killed in the grocery store were disappointed at yet another delay in the case, Dougherty said. The families want justice and closure, he said.
“They’re incredibly frustrated at the pace of this prosecution,” he told reporters after the court hearing.
The people killed in the shooting were Boulder police officer Eric Talley, 51; Denny Stong, 20; Neven Stanisic, 23; Rikki Olds, 25; Tralona Bartkowiak, 49; Teri Leiker, 51; Suzanne Fountain, 59; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; and Jody Waters, 65.
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