SEATTLE — The man accused of attacking two women and bludgeoning a man to death in a span of 13 hours in March will have a competency hearing for a murder charge before his trial begins.
Alexander Jay, 40, is facing a first-degree murder charge, a first-degree assault charge and a second-degree assault charge. He has remained behind bars since March when prosecutors said the crimes took place.
Jay's lawyer asked for a competency hearing to determine whether the 40-year-old is deemed competent to stand trial. Jay was deemed incompetent to stand trial on assault charges in April.
Prosecutors said Jay was seen on surveillance video attacking a woman and throwing her down the stairs at Union Station, leaving her with multiple broken bones.
Then less than 10 minutes later, prosecutors accused Jay of repeatedly stabbing another woman waiting at a bus stop, putting her in the hospital.
The case took a complicated turn when according to charging documents police found a piece of rebar at the scene where a witness found a body back in a parking lot along East Olive Way in March.
The evidence was sent to a crime lab for DNA testing and the June results linked Brent Morgan Wood's death back to Jay. An autopsy revealed Wood died from multiple blunt force injuries to the head. Prosecutors added a murder charge on top of the two assault charges for Jay.
King County Court documents showed Jay has multiple convictions in Washington state for domestic violence burglary and theft. He also has a criminal history that spans multiple states including California and Nevada for similar crimes.
Back in March, Jay was deemed incompetent to stand trial and while in jail was supposed to be getting inpatient treatment. However, the department of social and health services has not admitted him yet because of what they say is a lack of beds.
Jay will be paid $250 a day while the state remains unable to find him mental health help, a judge ordered in June.