PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Two psychologists have found a homeless man accused of fatally stabbing a South Florida teenager competent to stand trial.
Their findings were announced Wednesday by Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Charles Burton. He plans a hearing soon so the psychologists can be questioned by prosecutors and the defense lawyers for Semmie Williams.
Recommended Videos
Williams, 39, is accused of killing 14-year-old Ryan Rogers on Nov. 15 after the teenager went out for a bike ride.
His body was found the next day alongside an Interstate 95 overpass.
Defense attorneys said in court papers that Williams suffers from mental illness.
Rogers was a freshman at William T. Dwyer High School in Palm Beach Gardens and an avid soccer player.
Investigators said he left his home in Palm Beach Gardens on his bike at 6:40 p.m. Nov. 15. At 10:30 p.m., his mother, Cindy, reported him missing.
According to authorities, a set of headphones, which did not belong to Rogers, were found at the scene. A DNA match to Williams was determined by the Palm Beach County Forensic Biology Unit.
Palm Beach Gardens Police Chief Clint Shannon confirmed that Rogers had been stabbed.
“The incident itself appears to be a completely random act. We do not have a motive in this case and I would best describe it as an innocent child victim having a chance encounter with a very violent criminal,” Shannon said last year at a news conference.
Williams has an extensive criminal record, according to Shannon.
He is being held without bond at Palm Beach County’s Main Detention Center as he awaits trial.
In a statement posted last year on a GoFundMe page set up the Rogers’ family, Ryan’s mother, Cindy, said:
“. . . The loss of Ryan is unimaginable and I never thought I would ever not see him play soccer again, or spend vacation with him or see him walk through the door or send him off to school every morning. His smile, his laugh and his heart is what I remember the most.”