Colorado Shooting Suspect’s Mental Condition Improves After Forced Medication, Now Competent to Stand Trial
Forced medication has shown significant improvement in the mental condition of Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, the suspect accused of killing 10 people at a Colorado supermarket in 2021. Psychologists testified in court, stating that Alissa is now competent to stand trial.
Experts at a state mental hospital evaluated Alissa in August and found him mentally competent. However, his defense attorney, Kathryn Herold, asked for the determination to be debated in court.
Psychologist Julie Gallagher, testifying for the prosecution, explained that Alissa’s mental condition improved this spring after being court-ordered to take medication for his schizophrenia. The hospital’s finding of competency was supported by Gallagher’s review.
Alissa, 24, who suffers from schizophrenia, appeared in court wearing a red and white jumpsuit. The courtroom was filled with victims and the families of those killed.
Prior to his admission at the state hospital in December 2021, Alissa had not received psychiatric treatment or medication, according to forensic psychologist Loandra Torres, who evaluated him.
Individual therapy sessions, along with the forced medication, played a crucial role in Alissa’s competency improvement, according to Torres.
Judge Ingrid Bakke scheduled a two-day hearing to address the issue but denied Herold’s request for another evaluation from the mental hospital.
It is important to note that mental competency does not imply a cure, but rather that the individual can understand court proceedings and assist with their defense. Mental competency is distinct from pleading not guilty by reason of insanity, which argues that a person’s mental health prevented them from understanding right from wrong during the crime.
Gallagher emphasized that Alissa’s inability to reach mental competency for over two years is rare and a result of the severe nature of his illness.
Defense attorney Herold highlighted potential bias in competency evaluators, particularly in high-profile cases. However, experts at the mental hospital attributed Alissa’s competency to his consistent medication intake and a stable therapeutic environment.
Alissa faces charges of murder and multiple attempted murder counts for the shooting spree that began on March 22, 2021, at a crowded King Soopers store in Boulder. He has not yet entered a plea.
Alissa allegedly started firing outside the grocery store, targeting at least one person in the parking lot before moving inside. Employees provided accounts of customers and themselves scrambling to escape the violence.
Law enforcement responded swiftly, with a SWAT team apprehending Alissa as he was taken into custody.
Authorities have not yet disclosed the motive behind the shooting, and limited information is available regarding why Alissa carried out the attack. In 2018, he was convicted of assaulting a fellow high school student, but this remains his only known crime prior to the shooting.
While hospital reports on Alissa are not public under Colorado law, his lawyers confirmed in court filings last February that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and struggles to tolerate extended contact with others.
Last year, the remodeled King Soopers store reopened, with approximately half of the previous employees choosing to return.
