LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Louisville man charged in a 2022 rape investigation has once again been deemed incompetent to stand trial by a judge. Prosecutors responded by filing a 202-C, a process that could force Antonio Coleman into mental health treatment.
An evidentiary hearing will determine if there's enough evidence of the rape crime to proceed with commitment.
In 2023, Wilcox ruled there was not enough evidence to commit Coleman for involuntary treatment over the rape charge he's now facing again. This time is different, however, since prosecutors said the victim has agreed to testify against Coleman.
This is the second time Coleman's charges have been dismissed in the 2022 rape case due to incompetency.
"He doesn't understand why he's back in jail. He doesn't understand what's happening here, like what we're trying to do or what the Commonwealth is trying to do," Coleman's defense attorney, Que Christian, said in June.
On Monday, Judge Jennifer Bryant Wilcox agreed with Dr. Andrea Talledo's testimony that Coleman was incompetent to stand trial after examining him during his time at Central State Hospital. The psychiatrist also referenced his history going back to a 2004 report from Jefferson County Public Schools, which diagnosed him with low intellectual ability.
"The Court finds that [Coleman] is incompetent to stand trial and there is not a substantial probability that [he] will attain competency in the foreseeable future," the judge wrote.
Coleman's charges in a string of sexual harassment allegations that took place in Louisville's medical district between late 2023 and early 2024 were also previously dismissed for incompetency. Since 2011, he's been arrested and declared incompetent for trial at least 28 times.
"Disorderly conduct or criminal trespass or indecent exposure — while those are troubling and they shouldn't happen — it simply doesn't fall under the category offenses that qualify for a person to be detained under a 202-C action," former Jefferson County Judge David Holton explained, saying the justice system is overcrowded with people like Coleman.
"If we had proper behavioral healthcare in this country," he said. "We wouldn't need a criminal justice system."
The evidentiary hearing is scheduled for August 19, but the remaining legal process is confidential unless the judge or defense decide otherwise.
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