Judge finds Delonte Hart mentally fit to stand trial for 2 Santa Rosa stabbings

A Sonoma County Judge ruled Thursday that a homeless man suspected in the fatal stabbing of a man in downtown Santa Rosa and a separate knife attack in a movie theater was mentally competent to stand trial, restarting criminal proceedings on hold for two years.

Delonte Hart, 25, has been undergoing treatment at the Sonoma County Jail and Napa State Hospital since his June 2016 arrest for symptoms of psychotic and schizophrenia disorders in order to help him gain the ability to cooperate in his defense in the criminal case.

Hart is accused of killing Cirak Tesfazgi, 32, of Santa Rosa in a brutal June 27, 2016, knife attack on Riley Street and then two days later stabbing moviegoer Adam Lucero, a 21-year-old recent college graduate, as he sat watching a movie in the Roxy Theater on Mendocino Avenue. Hart was arrested near Prince Memorial Greenway shortly after the theater stabbing.

Hart’s mental competency was questioned soon after his arrest. Public Defender Jeff Mitchell said that Hart, who refused to speak with him for months, maintains his innocence, saying that he didn’t commit the crimes and was instead at a Taco Bell.

Thursday, Judge H. N. Papadakis made his decision that Hart can stand trial after listening to conflicting opinions from two doctors who evaluated the man.

Dr. Robbin Broadman, an independent psychiatrist, testified for the defense, saying that in her evaluation Hart was only able to grasp surface-level concepts like the roles of a judge, prosecutor and defense attorney but appeared unable to engage in a logical conversation about his case.

But Dr. Shawna Leppert, a staff psychologist at Napa State Hospital, testified that Hart appeared to understand key criminal justice concepts such as the difference between guilty, not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity pleas.

Papadakis said the decision was not easy, but that he found Leppert’s testimony to be more specific and hold greater weight.

“The court does find he has not only the ability to understand the (criminal court) process, he does come up with an alibi of being elsewhere and he has the ability to communicate with the defense (attorney),” said Papadakis said. “The court finds he has restored competency.”

Hart will return to court Monday to schedule a time for a preliminary hearing for a different judge to determine if there is enough evidence for a trial.

A Santa Rosa High School graduate, Tesfazgi was found stabbed more than 50 times in a Riley Street doorway where he often slept.

With no surviving witnesses, police had few clues to help them find the killer apart from bloody fingerprints left on a 8-inch J.A. Henckels chef’s knife found near the man’s body.

Police officials said a DNA test showed Hart’s shoes were still bloodied from the brutal attack of Tesfazgi when he entered the Roxy Theater two days later and sat in a seat behind Lucero, who had just graduated from California Polytechnic University.

He reached around and stabbed Lucero, who fought back and suffered significant injuries before Hart fled the movie theater.

Police said Hart - a transient man who is originally from Baltimore and came to Santa Rosa from Alameda County where he spent time in jail - was shown in surveillance images taken at a Macy’s where two knives had been stolen prior to the attacks.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 707-521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.