This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A 22-year-old West Bountiful man accused of stabbing his teenage relative last summer has been found not competent to stand trial, a judge ruled Tuesday.
Mitchell Dean Howe is charged in 2nd District Court with attempted murder, a first-degree felony.
In November, three mental health evaluators ruled Howe was competent to stand trial on the charge. But in February, defense attorney Greg Skordas said those same evaluators would review Howe again, due to incarceration affecting his mental state.
On Tuesday, Judge Glen Dawson ordered Howe committed to the Utah State Hospital after the evaluators reported that he was no longer competent. A review hearing is set for Oct. 8.
West Bountiful police Chief Todd Hixson said in June that police were called to a home near 1200 North and 640 West around 1:30 a.m. on June 27.
When they arrived, police discovered Howe had allegedly stabbed a juvenile in the torso with a large knife while the boy slept.
Howe said in a letter written to the judge in December that he took an Ambien the night he stabbed his 14-year-old cousin and didn't fully remember the event.
Twitter: @jm_miller