LAKEPORT — Convicted wife-killer Gerald Frank Stanley testified Wednesday morning during a retrospective competency hearing related to his murder conviction and death sentence in the 1980s.
“I deserved the death penalty,” Stanley told Judge William McKinstry during Wednesday”s hearing at the Lake County Courthouse.
Stanley appeared along with his attorney, Jack Leavitt, via videoconferencing from San Quentin State Prison. Lake County District Attorney Don Anderson represented his office.
A Butte County jury convicted Stanley in 1983 for shooting to death his fourth wife in Nice in 1980, while Stanley had been on parole for killing his second spouse five years before.
A separate jury was then asked to determine whether Stanley was mentally competent during penalty phase of the 1983 trial. That jury determined Stanley was competent and he eventually received the death penalty.
However, a federal judge overturned the competency verdict in 2008, staying Stanley”s execution because one of the jurors on the competency panel failed to disclose that she had been a violent-crime victim.
A Butte County judge then ruled it would be feasible to look back and determine whether Stanley was competent during the penalty phase of the trial. The retrospective competency matter was transferred to Lake County in March.
Both sides in the retrospective competency hearing appear to be arguing for the same point, as Leavitt has said his client does not want the death sentence invalidated.
Stanley told McKinstry that he understood the nature of all the court proceedings related to the murder trial, penalty phase and original competency hearing. He said he has never suffered from mental illness and has always been competent.
Stanley also said he objected to his federal defenders filing a motion questioning the jury”s competency decision.
Stanley added that he knew of the juror”s failure to fully disclose her history at the time of the original hearing but he didn”t object to her sitting on the competency panel. “I wanted to keep that juror,” he said. “I liked her very much.”
He said he thinks his original trial counsel may have allowed the juror to remain on the panel to create an issue that could be appealed after the fact.
McKinstry heard nearly 30 minutes of testimony from Stanley on Wednesday, but reserved making a final decision until Sept. 30. The judge said he needed time to consider case-related transcripts.
Technical difficulties delayed the start of hearing for nearly 35 minutes. Once under way, the hearing lasted approximately 45 minutes.
Contact Jeremy Walsh at jwalsh@record-bee.com or call him at 263-5636, ext. 37.
