Criminal proceedings have been suspended against a man accused of killing a man with a baseball bat on Rosecrans Street while he undergoes a mental competency exam.
The attorney for Christian Louis Ewing, 29, told a San Diego Superior Court judge he doubted whether Christian Louis Ewing, 29, understood court proceedings, so he will be evaluated in jail on Feb. 20.
A psychiatric report will be given to a judge before a March 6 court hearing, said Deputy District Attorney Brian Erickson on Jan. 11. The preliminary hearing set for Jan. 11 was canceled.
Ewing was arraigned Dec. 28 on a murder charge in the Dec. 5 death of Gregory Freeman, 57, who died from head and facial injuries. Erickson previously said Ewing’s DNA was found on the barrel of the bat found at the scene on Rosecrans Street near Pacific Highway.
Ewing was arrested Dec. 24 in the Midway District. He previously has pleaded not guilty and remains in jail on $1 million bail.
If a judge determines he is mentally incompetent to stand trial, Ewing will return to Patton State Hospital where he spent some time after he rushed the stage at Petco Park in 2015 when singer Taylor Swift was performing a concert.
After being placed on medication, Ewing eventually returned to court and was found mentally competent. He pleaded guilty to felony assault in hurting a security guard who broke several ribs after he tackled him on the stage on Aug. 29, 2015. He was later sentenced to almost two years in custody with credits for time served.
Erickson said someone called 911 from the Old Town Trolley station to report seeing a man beating another man with an object. He said authorities do not yet know if Ewing was acquainted with Freeman before the assault.
Freeman was homeless but had relatives in Missouri, according to the prosecutor.