Dedric Lamont AtkinsA 35-year-old Chattanooga man charged with murder in the 2003 death of his 5-year-old son has been declared mentally competent to stand trial.
Dedric Lamont Atkins faces a charge of first-degree murder in the Sept. 28, 2003, beating and strangling death of his son Dedric Johnson. His trial is scheduled for Oct. 9.
Psychiatrists have evaluated Atkins repeatedly at the Middle Tennessee Health Institute since his arrest and declared him “delusional and psychotic” because of a history of schizophrenia and mental illness dating to at least 1997, according to Times Free Press archives.
A February letter from the institute declared that Atkins no longer needed housing in the facility and sent him back to the Hamilton County Jail, advising, however, that he maintain a medication regimen.
Atkins’ attorney, Hilary Hodgkins, has filed paperwork to seek an insanity defense based on Atkins’ mental state at the time of the crime. Following a pretrial hearing Thursday, she said that experts for both the defense and prosecution say her client is able to stand trial but that the insanity defense is valid.