A Crawford County resident charged with assaulting police officers in the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol has been ordered to undergo a psychological exam to determine whether he is mentally competent to stand trial.
The defendant, Jeremy J. Vorous, 46, of Venango, is one of four defendants from northwestern Pennsylvania indicted in the Jan. 6 attack. The three others — one from Meadville in Crawford County and two from McKean County — have been sentenced.
Vorous had been headed to trial in late September in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia when his federal public defenders raised concerns about his competency in a motion filed Aug. 6.
The lawyers said in the motion that Vorous' behavior at a meeting in July led them to believe he "is presently suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering him mentally incompetent to the extent that he is unable to assist properly in his own defense despite the best efforts of counsel to assist him." The motion offers no further details.
In response, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras on Aug. 23 ordered Vorous to undergo a psychological exam by Sept. 12, with the report filed by Sept. 26. Contreras set a hearing for Oct. 3.
Contreras postponed Vorous' trial, which was to start Sept. 24. The ruling on Vorous' competency will determine how the case proceeds.
Superseding indictment added charges for Vorous
Vorous has pleaded not guilty. He remains free on his own recognizance, according to court records.
Vorous faces 12 counts. Among the charges is that he assaulted police officers three times, including with a bike rack and wooden sign, during the storming of the Capitol in support of then-President Donald Trump.
Vorous is also charged with obstruction of an official proceeding — the joint session of Congress that convened on Jan. 6, 2021, to certify the Electoral College vote in the 2020 presidential election, which Joe Biden won.
Vorous was first indicted in April 2021 . A superseding indictment in February added the assault charges. The new charges appear to have grown out of the review of more video evidence of the attack on the Capitol.
More than 1,488defendants have been charged in the breach of the Capitol, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia . It said 944 defendants have had their cases adjudicated and been sentenced.
Contact epalattella@timesnews.com or 814-870-1813. Follow him on X @ETNpalattella .
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Psychological exam delays trial for Crawford County man charged in Jan. 6 riots
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