OROVILLE — For the third time in the same case, a Chico man who has been in custody awaiting trial some three years, was ordered Thursday to once again undergo a mental competency examination over his strident objection.

Criminal proceedings were suspended for James Lee Mathews, 37 — just days before he was scheduled to finally stand trial on multiple charges of auto theft, drug possession and evading police.

On Thursday, Mathews, who purportedly suffers from a cognitive condition called Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, rejected a plea

bargain offer that would have reduced his maximum potential sentence upon conviction from 17 to 8 years in prison.

"Just five seconds ago, I was competent enough to plead guilty, but now you say, I'm incompetent," an irate Mathews told Butte County Superior Court Judge James Reilley.

Mathews had twice before been declared mentally incompetent to stand trial and both times was committed to Napa State Hospital.

He had been cleared by doctors to go to trial on Monday in the three-year-old criminal case.

On Thursday, his appointed criminal defense attorney, Robert Radcliffe, again "raised a doubt" about whether Mathews could competently assist in his defense.

Radcliffe said he based that concern partly on a discussion he had recently with one of two doctors who had been appointed by the court to determine whether Mathews was legally sane at the time of the crimes for which he is charged.

Though

the judge said he had no choice but to order another mental evaluation, Reilley told the defendant if there is any good news, it is that he would likely not have to spend too much more time in a state hospital because he has been locked up nearly the three-year maximum period allowed under state competency laws.

Ellen Dove, a Sacramento civil rights attorney who has brought a $3 million federal lawsuit alleging physical mistreatment and improper medical care for Mathews in the Butte County Jail, said she strongly objected to renewing mental competency proceedings in the case.

She argued that several jailhouse writs Mathews had filed in recent months should provide "ample evidence" he understands the criminal proceedings and is competent to go to trial.

Alleging some of Mathews' jailers have harassed and made him a target for retribution by other inmates, Dove urged the judge Thursday to release the defendant on his own recognizance for his personal safety.

While he was not inclined to free Mathews, the judge said he would consider transferring him out of the local jail if another suitable locked facility can be found.

Dove pointed out, however, that she had made a similar request to another judge last year, only to learn there is no long-term secure facility in Butte County for someone with Mathews' mental condition.

The judge vacated Monday's scheduled jury trial and ordered Mathews to be examined yet again by a court-appointed psychologist.

Further court proceedings in the case are set for Aug. 8.

Mathews' mother, who has attended all of his court hearings, shook her head in dismay at the latest legal setback in her son's case.

"I just don't understand this," she said.

Outside of court, Mathews' civil attorney asserted that had another mental evaluation not been ordered in the protracted case, the criminal charges would likely have had to be dismissed, because the legal time period for bringing the Chico man to trial would have elapsed.