Opinion ID: 1036479
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Dr. Kathy Ronan

Text: At the State’s request, the state trial court ordered a mental evaluation of Lee. On July 20, 1999, clinical psychologist Dr. Kathy Ronan evaluated: (1) Lee’s present mental condition and competency to stand trial; and (2) Lee’s mental condition at the time of the murders. In her August 11, 1999 report, filed in the state trial court in September 1999, Dr. Ronan recounted Lee’s family background. Prior to his incarceration, 2 The state trial court appointed criminal defense attorneys Michael Jackson and Joseph Hagood III to represent Lee. Lead counsel Jackson was an experienced criminal law attorney, who worked several years as a prosecutor in a district attorney’s office in Alabama, and then as a criminal defense attorney in private practice for five years. 9 Case: 12-14421 Date Filed: 08/01/2013 Page: 10 of 128 Lee lived with his family, and had two sisters, three half-brothers, and one halfsister. Lee told Dr. Ronan that he was “mentally abused” by his mother, and that he was cursed and all his life told he “ain’t gonna amount to nothing.” But Lee “denied any physical or sexual abuse, or any significant difficulties while growing up.” As for physical or mental health problems, Lee reported that he once suffered a head injury that knocked him unconscious and necessitated a hospital visit, although he was not sure if he had sustained a concussion. Lee denied any other medical problems. Lee said that he had never received psychiatric services until after his incarceration for these murders. As to mental capacity, Dr. Ronan observed that Lee exhibited “a few areas of below normal functioning . . . but no significant deficits.” Lee’s test results “suggested that his overall intellect is probably within the low average to perhaps borderline range,” but Dr. Ronan found “no indication of retardation.” Dr. Ronan also recounted how Lee had a “fairly significant history of substance abuse, including Marijuana Dependence; Alcohol Dependence; and Cocaine Dependence.” Ultimately, Dr. Ronan concluded that Lee was competent to stand trial, as Lee did not “have any type of major psychiatric illness,” “[t]here is no indication of retardation,” and Lee “demonstrated adequate knowledge in all areas assessed 10 Case: 12-14421 Date Filed: 08/01/2013 Page: 11 of 128 related to legal proceedings.” Dr. Ronan also evaluated Lee’s mental state at the time of the murders. Lee told Dr. Ronan that immediately prior to the murders, he smoked “a blunt” of marijuana laced with cocaine and consumed a half pint of whiskey. Lee said that earlier that same day: (1) his head was burning and when he awoke that morning, he saw what he believed was a dead woman dressed in white who attempted to wake him; and (2) he smoked a joint of marijuana. Other than those reported facts, Dr. Ronan found “no indication that [Lee] had any type of command hallucinations or delusions directing him to be engaged in the behaviors related to the alleged offense.” Accordingly, Dr. Ronan’s opinion was that “there were no significant mental illness symptoms which interfered with [Lee’s] ability to appreciate the consequences of his actions during the time of the alleged offense” and any “substance induced perceptual anomalies . . . did not interfere with his ability to understand right from wrong during the time of the alleged crime.”