Murder defendant found to be mentally incapable to stand trial

He will be forcibly medicated with antipsychotic drugs

A city resident who was arrested in 2020 for allegedly killing his neighbor has been found mentally incompetent to stand trial, paving the way for a state hospital stay where he can be forcibly medicated, court records show.

Anthony Lamont Woods Jr., 32, was charged in September 2020 with murder in the shooting of Lajuan Andre Barnes. Police said at the time the killing was over “perceived transgressions,” without elaboration, and that Woods initially fled the area in a car but returned just as the cops were showing up to arrest him.

Woods' case has been in limbo since November 2020, when his own attorney declared a doubt about his mental competency. That triggered a legal proceeding, including evaluation by multiple doctors. He was certified mentally incompetent in September 2021; six months later, a judge authorized the involuntarily medication of Woods with antipsychotic drugs, court records show.

Woods appealed the decision, but in December, an appeals court found there were “no cognizable issues on appeal” and affirmed the order. The appellate court decision was certified last week, marking the final step needed for Woods to be sent to the Department of State Hospitals.

The hospital stay can last until doctors “restore” Woods' competency or until they deem he cannot be restored, at which point the court will hold a hearing and decide how to proceed. There's also the issue of how long it will take to transfer him; for years there has been a significant statewide backlog of mentally ill jail inmates awaiting a bed in one of the handful of state hospitals that can take them. It has led to sanctions being imposed against the DSH for failing to abide by a court-imposed deadline.

For now, Woods remains jailed in Alameda County, records show.