Gene Arnold “Root Root” Hawkins was found mentality incompetent this afternoon to stand trial for the 2006 shooting death of Roanoke Rapids businessman Shelby Salmon.

Halifax County Superior Court Judge Alma Hinton instead ordered Hawkins, 30, to spend the rest of his life at Cherry Hospital, a state mental facility in Goldsboro. Should Hawkins ever be found competent to stand trial, he would be sent back to the Halifax County Jail and remain under the same release conditions he was prior to today’s proceeding.

Hinton’s ruling came after three medical experts testified that Hawkins suffers from an organic brain dysfunction brought on by parental abuse, a drug overdose and a car wreck in which he was ejected from the vehicle as well as other factors.

The experts testified it would be nearly impossible for Hawkins to recover from this dysfunction.

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Salmon’s widow, Beatrice, choked back tears during parts of the proceeding.

She said afterward, “I think everything’s been done for the best and to cover the future if things should change.”

Asked what the past seven years have been like since her husband’s death, Mrs. Salmon said, choking back tears, “It’s a big void. I miss him very much. I think he would think that what’s happened would be the best that could be done.”

Members of the Hawkins family filed out of the courthouse without acknowledging two requests by rrspin.com for comment.

Halifax County District Attorney Melissa Pelfrey said afterward, “In light of the evidence presented today, Mr. Hawkins is where he needs to be. The family understands and is pleased by the court’s ruling.”

Pelfrey declined comment on what her possible strategy would have been should the case have gone to trial. She said the case remains open. The state planned to seek the death penalty.

Details of the shooting, which occurred at Salmon’s business on Roanoke Avenue, were not discussed during the hearing.

Hawkins and testimony

Hawkins, who was medicated during the competency hearing, sat with his lawyers Phillip Lane and Sam Dixon in a blue dress shirt and khaki pants. On the back of his shaved head was a tattoo of a bat skull with wings.

George P. Corvin, a forensic psychiatrist from Raleigh, testified he has spoken with Hawkins on five occasions, the last evaluation being Tuesday.

Initially, Corvin said he thought Hawkins had a severe personality disorder. After further investigation he concluded, “Mr. Hawkins has a special form of brain damage. I believe Mr. Hawkins has the capacity to know he’s a defendant and understand he’s in peril.”

But, Corvin said, he is severely impacted with the propensity to explosive and bizarre behavior.

This impairment, the doctor said, comes from several risk factors, including physical abuse that began at the age of 2 and included blows to the head. One blow, where the pin of a belt blinded him, required surgery. “The great majority (of the abuse) was at the hands of his mother,” Corvin said. “She is severely mentally ill.”

A car wreck ejected him from a vehicle and he lost consciousness and an overdose of heroin, which he thought was powdered cocaine, caused him to lose consciousness. “Mr. Hawkins had numerous head injuries,” Corvin testified.

Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found his brain to be abnormal with defects in his metabolism that impair his ability to cope, make him act impulsively and cause him to be unable to come to terms with the differences. “He suffers from organic brain syndrome,” the doctor said. “He can’t control bad choices.”

Corvin said medications are a Band-Aid.

Since his incarceration he has set his cell on fire believing he was helping someone and has swallowed a razor blade. “He’s more a risk to himself. He does better in a controlled setting. His current incarceration probably saved his life.”

Physical and emotional abuse

There is very little that can be done to change his outbursts.

Corvin said he has been through volumes of records that show a pattern of abuse since he was 2 with no intervention. “He was removed (from home) on numerous occasions and went right back. It’s hard for me to understand why that child went back to that environment. A 1998 photo by law enforcement showed multiple bruises and abrasions. He’s been abused physically and emotionally. It started at the age of 2 by his mother when he was in the crib. He was bitten by a dog and allowed to drink liquor that put him in a coma. The pictures look like a guy who was in a prize fight.”

Said Corvin: “The rest of his life wasn’t Emily Post, either. He was raised in an environment that was like a dangerous war zone. It’s my opinion he’s not competent to stand trial.”

Further testimony

Testimony by Dan Chartier, a Raleigh psychologist, only confirmed Corvin’s testimony. “I don’t see him ever being competent. It’s not going to substantially change.”

Claudia Coleman, also a psychologist from Raleigh, said, “I think he is a danger to himself and others.”

Coleman said in the right situation he might be able to have some outside socialization with others.

Dixon told Judge Hinton, “Mr. Hawkins is not capable of standing trial. It’s a tough situation. He is severely brain-damaged and incapable of proceeding.”