Attorney tells Houston TV station accused Santa Fe shooter likely to be found incompetent to stand trial

by: KPRC

Posted: Nov 4, 2019 / 11:06 AM CST / Updated: Nov 4, 2019 / 11:06 AM CST

FILE – In this Feb. 25, 2019 file photo, Dimitrios Pagourtzis is escorted by Galveston County Sheriff’s Office deputies into the jury assembly room for a change of venue hearing at the Galveston County Courthouse in Galveston, Texas. Attorneys representing the teenager charged in a school shooting last year at a Texas high school are seeking a mental evaluation, saying their client cannot understand the legal proceedings against him. Pagourtzis is charged with capital murder for the May 2018 attack at Santa Fe High School that left 10 people dead and wounded more than a dozen others. (Jennifer Reynolds/The Galveston County Daily News via AP, Pool, File)

HOUSTON (KXAN/KPRC) — The attorney for the teen accused of killing eight classmates and two teachers at Santa Fe High School in May 2018 says the shooter will likely be declared incompetent to stand trial, according to Houston TV station KPRC.

Defense attorney Nicholas Poehl moved to have his client, Dimitrios Pagourtzis, declared incompetent after defense experts conducted a months-long mental health evaluation.

A formal order from the bench will be forthcoming, Poehl told KPRC.

KPRC has reached out to Galveston prosecutors handling the case, but have yet to receive a response.