photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

John Timothy Price is pictured at a sentencing hearing on May 15, 2023, in Douglas County District Court. Price was convicted by a Douglas County jury of felony aggravated assault for throwing bricks at passing cars and smashing windows at businesses.

The last time Lawrence resident John Timothy Price was on trial was in 2022, when he wrestled with court security, had to be fitted with an electric shock device to control his outbursts, and was eventually charged with battery on a law enforcement officer.

His attorney argued Tuesday that these behavior issues mean he’s not fit to stand trial on his new charge. But Judge Amy Hanley disagreed, ruling that Price was competent and saying that he was in full control of his actions.

Price, 35, is charged with two counts of felony battery on two different law enforcement officers. He picked up both of those during the disposition of his previous criminal cases, in which he was accused of throwing brick pavers at passing cars and breaking the windows of businesses. One of the battery counts happened while he was in court in December 2022; in the other, he’s accused of spitting in a corrections officer’s mouth while at the jail in September 2022.

On Tuesday, Price’s attorney, Razmi Tahirkheli, asked the court to find Price incompetent and unable to effectively assist with his defense. Tahirkheli pointed to Price’s conduct the last time he was on trial as a reason why.

“We are here because of the last trial and his actions and inability to control himself,” Tahirkheli said.

But a psychologist who interviewed Price testified Tuesday that she thought Price was very much in control of his actions.

Sarah Godinez, from Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, said she interviewed Price for 10 to 15 minutes at the Douglas County Jail. She said she’d asked Price to talk with her in an interview room at the jail, but that Price refused; instead, “I stood at his cell door with an officer nearby,” Godinez said.

When they spoke, Godinez said that Price was coherent and aware of his surroundings. But she said he refused to answer basic questions, including who his attorney was and what kinds of charges he was facing. Godinez said the way he answered made her believe he was intentionally evading her questions.

“His responses were geared toward derailing the interview,” Godinez said. “I believe that by refusing to answer, he is creating barriers to his case, by his choice and by his design.”

After the interview, Godinez said she asked the jail staff about Price’s demeanor while in custody. She said the staff told her that when Price displayed aggressive behaviors, they seemed intentional and not the actions of a man who was out of control.

She said that Price was not receiving treatment from mental health staff at the jail, but that mental health staff had observed him, and that staff members believed “his intent is to have an audience” when he is acting out.

Another psychologist, Gregory Nawalanic, also interviewed Price. Nawalanic did not testify Tuesday, but Godinez said that she reviewed Nawalanic’s report and that it was similar to what she had observed. She said Nawalanic had written that Price refused to participate in the interview, and that while he may have suffered from a personality disorder, he was competent to understand what was happening around him.

Hanley said she agreed with the two reports that determined Price was competent. She said in her own interactions with Price in her courtroom, he had shown a clear ability to make decisions and demonstrated that he had control over his actions. She said Price appeared competent and capable of communicating with his attorney as needed.

“I see an individual who understands very clearly what is going on in front of him,” Hanley said.

Hanley then scheduled a preliminary hearing on May 23 in the felony battery on a law enforcement officer case.

Price is currently being held at the Douglas County Jail. In his previous case, he was convicted of two felony counts of aggravated assault, multiple felony and misdemeanor counts of criminal damage and multiple misdemeanor counts of battery on a law enforcement officer, and he was sentenced to more than five years in May of 2023, as the Journal-World reported.