D.C. Court Orders Suspect in Transgender Stabbing To Undergo Mental Observation

Gary Niles Montgomery, the 55-year-old Washington man accused of fatally stabbing transgender woman Deoni Jones, aka JaParker, at a Northeast bus stop in February 2012, appeared in court Friday morning, where his lawyers convinced U.S. Superior Court Judge Robert Morin to order Montgomery to submit to a mental-observation screening. After hearing arguments from Montgomery's lawyers regarding their client's mental state, Morin ordered two separate hearings for Montgomery, one Jan. 24, for screening purposes only, and a mental observation hearing on Feb. 8. Last year, Morin found Montgomery competent to stand trial, based on the results of two separate mental-observation hearings.