A 22-year-old man accused of fatally shooting his parents in a quiet Point Loma neighborhood the morning after Thanksgiving will be evaluated to determine whether he’s mentally competent to stand trial.
Peter Haynes appeared in San Diego County Superior Court on Wednesday to be arraigned on two counts of murder relating to the Friday killings of David Haynes and Lissa Haynes.
His defense attorney, Richard Gates, requested the arraignment be postponed so that Haynes can be evaluated on whether he’s competent to understand the charges against him and can assist in his own defense.
The judge granted the request, rescheduling the arraignment for Jan. 7.
The attorney gave no details about why Haynes should be evaluated. But Haynes sister, Kimberly Haynes, has told NBC 7 that her brother has paranoid schizophrenia.
Two weeks before the killings, she posted a picture on her Facebook page showing her brother teaching her how to hold a gun.
Haynes was arrested hours after his parents were shot in their home in the 1000 block of Tarento Boulevard. Police said they found him walking near the crime scene with a semi-automatic handgun in his pocket.
Local
Prosecutors are including in their criminal complaint against Haynes special circumstances in the killings that hint at premeditation.
First, prosecutors said Haynes was lying in wait when he shot his parents and that he committed a burglary in commission of the homicides.
If convicted of the charges, Haynes faces 25 years to life in prison.
