NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The man accused of killing a Belmont University student with a stray bullet in 2023 was in court for a pivotal hearing on Monday as a judge prepares to decide whether he's competent to stand trial.

On Nov. 7, 2023, the Metro Nashville Police Department said 18-year-old Jillian Ludwig, a Belmont student from New Jersey, was shot in the head while walking in the Edgehill Community Memorial Gardens Park. She later died from her injuries.

Shaquille Taylor was taken into custody, and later indicted, in connection with the shooting. Records show he admitted to shooting at a van when a stray bullet hit Ludwig.

At the time of the shooting, Taylor was out of jail due to being found incompetent to stand trial for another shooting but also found ineligible for a mental health facility.

Now, the state and Ludwig's parents are pushing to get this case to trial.

A key focus of the testimony on Monday, June 16 was whether Taylor meets the legal definition of intellectual disability.

On the stand were two licensed clinical psychologists, two forensic psychologists, a former coworker of Taylor's uncle, and his uncle's girlfriend, who spoke about his daily functioning.

Dr. Kimberly Brown, a licensed clinical psychologist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said Taylor's delays were obvious at 19 months old, according to his records.

Brown also conducted a forensic evaluation after a juvenile arrest for aggravated robbery and handgun possession. She found his IQ test score to be 56, defined as extremely low. She concluded that, at the time, Taylor did not meet the criteria for the insanity defense but claimed he did have an intellectual disability.

"He had significant difficulties understanding why I was there and what this was for, so one of the things we do is test their understanding to make sure they actually have understood what we said, and he really struggled to answer those questions, so his responses when I asked him what the evaluation was for was things like, 'See do I understand what's going on,' so kind of some very general, vague responses, or 'About my charges' or 'About a doctor thing,'" Brown explained.

Another doctor who's been involved in recent conversations with Taylor said she found him to lack the competency required to proceed with a trial.

Dr. Mary Elizabeth Wood, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, sat on the stand for over two hours, recalling her findings on Taylor's mental capacity.

Wood told the court Taylor has a relative strength in factual understanding.

"He definitely has a better grasp on factual information about the system," Wood said. "I did talk a little bit about the consistency of that grasp."

However, she said Taylor struggles to understand rationally how this case will be handled in court, the evidence against him, and the consequences, describing their discussions as "circular."

One example was Taylor's lack of rational understanding of his chances of winning the case if it were to proceed.

"He needs to have the capacity to understand these new decisions to weigh this information and understand that, and his response when I asked him what would happen was, '10 out of 10, I would go 10 out of 10. I would probably lose, but I would probably win because y'all ain't got no weapon,' and then he went on to start describing odds in terms of 10 to 30, and I asked him what that meant, and he said the 10 means would lose, but the 30 means would win," Wood testified.

Dr. Uduakobong Ikpe, a clinical and forensic psychologist, conducted a commitability test on Taylor and determined he is committable.

Ikpe stated that Taylor is suggestible and has poor decision-making and problem-solving skills.
She recommended placement at the Harold Jordan Center.

Taylor's uncle and his uncle's girlfriend, who is also the guardian of Taylor's 4-year-old daughter, took the stand, as well. They were asked about his daily behaviors, including his parenting, the way he functioned in family settings, and even his job performance at places like Checkers and Chipotle.

The uncle, Edward Sampson, said Taylor would often get confused during simple conversations, needed help with job applications, and was never given responsibility at work for tasks like operating the grill or drive-thru.

Sampson also testified that Taylor struggled with simple decisions, including a moment when he tried to light a grill on a covered porch, not understanding the risk.

"One time, we were having a little cookout at her house, and she asked him to start the grill, and he left the grill on the porch and he lit the grill, and then she told him to get it off the porch, and he was like, 'No, it's too hot.' She was like, 'No, I wanted you to take it off the porch first,' and it was kind of confusing for him, like, I knew he knew to start the grill, but he didn't think about the flame going up onto the ceiling," Sampson recalled.

The hearing is scheduled to continue into Tuesday, June 17.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/nashville/competency-hearing-begins-for-suspect-in-deadly-shooting-of-belmont-student/