September 5, 2008

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) -- A man accused of the near-fatal stabbing of an Athens-Clarke County police officer has been ruled competent to stand trial by a jury, despite a long history of mental illness.

The attorney for Stephen Anthony Eberhart said he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and that a state psychiatrist testified in a one-day hearing this week that Eberhart is "one of the most not-competent people she's seen."

The 44-year-old Eberhart is accused of stabbing Sgt. Courtney Gale 10 times with a kitchen knife on Dec. 11. The off-duty officer was working a security job and approached Eberhart after being told he was acting bizarrely.

Eberhart, charged with attempted murder, is at the state psychiatric hospital in Augusta.

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