By Sam Stanton
sstanton@sacbee.com
PLACERVILLE -- New questions arose this afternoon over whether Phillip Garrido is mentally competent to stand trial in the 1991 kidnapping of Jaycee Lee Dugard.
![MC_GARRIDO07[1].JPG](http://blogs.sacbee.com/crime/MC_GARRIDO07%5B1%5D.JPG)
With the one-year anniversary of Dugard's reappearance after 18 years of captivity coming next week, a judge in El Dorado Superior Court said there still is a question over whether officials will seek a psychological exam of Garrido (photo left) before the case goes forward.
Garrido's attorney, Susan Gellman, did not address the issue in open court during a three-minute hearing this afternoon, but the judge indicated that the matter had come up in a private meeting before court began.
The case is set to go to a preliminary hearing Oct. 7, during which prosecutors will attempt to show that there is enough evidence to move to trial on kidnapping and rape charges against Garrido and his wife, Nancy.
But the possibility of testing Garrido's mental competence could push the matter back much further. It is not the first time that questions have been raised over Garrido's mental state. Gellman has previously filed court papers questioning his mental state.
Nancy Garrido's attorney, Stephen Tapson, said no such issues have been raised about his own client, and he deflected questions about his view of Phillip Garrido's mental state.
"Everybody's nuts," Tapson said.
Call The Bee's Sam Stanton, (916) 321-1091.
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