Testing Ordered In Driver’s Slaying Sanity Of Man Questioned In Shooting On School Bus
A man who was to have been arraigned Friday for the murder of an Orient, Wash., school bus driver was instead sent to Eastern State Hospital for a new round of mental testing.
A previous evaluation at the state mental hospital in Medical Lake determined that James E. Iverson is not competent to stand trial. Stevens County Prosecutor Jerry Wetle said hospital doctors haven’t given an opinion on whether Iverson was legally sane at the time of the Nov. 25 homicide.
Iverson, 45, is accused of shooting school bus driver Frank Eslick to death in front of seven students, including Iverson’s son.
Eslick, 61, was shot in the head with a high-powered rifle when he stopped his bus in front of Iverson’s home near Barstow, northwest of Colville on U.S. Highway 395.
Iverson allegedly shot Eslick again as the wounded driver staggered off his bus. The children on the bus, ranging from kindergarten to high school age, escaped through the rear emergency door and took refuge in a nearby house.
Sheriff’s deputies were already on the way because of reports that someone had been shooting at passing cars. Iverson surrendered to the officers about two hours later without further violence.
Court-appointed defense attorney John Troberg said Iverson previously was diagnosed as schizophrenic. He hears voices in his head and believes he is the subject of “mind-control experiments,” Troberg said during an earlier court appearance.
Iverson said “yes” Friday when Superior Court Judge Rebecca Baker asked whether he understood what was happening in court.
Wetle said the court will wait for 90 days to see whether Iverson regains competency to stand trial and assist in his defense. If doctors say Iverson still is not competent, he could be ordered back to the mental hospital for three more months of observation and treatment.
So far, Iverson is charged with a single count of first-degree murder, but Wetle said he plans to file additional charges.
, DataTimes