UPDATE: Angelo Vidal Mendoza Sr.
MAN WHO ALLEGEDLY BIT OUT SON’S EYE IS DECLARED MENTALLY INCOMPETENT
by Steve E. Swenson, The Bakersfield Californian
Angelo Mendoza Sr., accused of biting out his son’s eye, is not competent to stand trial, a judge ruled Tuesday.
That means the 34-year-old defendant will likely go to a state hospital until he becomes competent or he has further hearings on whether he can be kept in custody.
He is charged with mayhem and torture in an April 28 attack on his 4-year-old son, Angelo Mendoza Jr. The boy was blinded in both eyes, but regained sight in his right eye within a few weeks. He has been staying in a foster home, although his mother and two of the senior Mendoza’s brothers are seeking custody. He is reportedly doing well.
The finding by Judge Michael Bush came after a psychologist found in July that Mendoza was not competent. Later a psychiatrist made the same finding. A hearing was set Sept. 22 on where to place Mendoza.
He can be sent to a state hospital, typically Patton State Hospital, for up to three years. The hospital staff treats patients in an effort to restore competency.
If that doesn’t happen, then Mendoza would have annual court hearings on his status, that could result in confining him for the rest of his life.
He could also be released if a judge rules he is not a substantial danger to others.
A finding of mental incompetency means Mendoza cannot understand the nature of the charges against him and he cannot help in his defense. It is different than being declared insane at the time of the offense.
The doctors reports are confidential and the attorneys on the case are under court order not to comment.
But Deputy Public Defender Richard Terry has said in court that Mendoza was unable to communicate with him in June, possibly due to problems with his medication. He takes medication for paralysis — a condition he’s had for several years after he was stabbed in a robbery attempt — and to control seizures.
On June 16, Mendoza appeared lucid in court and answered questions from a judge in a strong voice. But a week later, Terry told a judge that Mendoza wasn’t able to talk at all.
Because of the medication issue, Prosecutor John Lua wanted Mendoza to be examined by a psychiatrist who is also trained as a medical doctor.
Dr. Luis Velosa, a psychiatrist, was appointed in July and it was his report that was reviewed Tuesday. The earlier report was from Carol Hendrix, a psychologist.
Bakersfield police have reported that Mendoza told officers he had stopped taking his prescription medication before the attack on his son. He told police he felt anxious and was seeing things that weren’t there.
After the attack, Mendoza rolled his wheelchair to a backyard of a vacant home and cut his own legs with an ax and a broken ceramic plate.
I need to make something very clear here. When this story broke, police first believed that Mendoza was under the influence of PCP during the attack, but subsequent reports say no PCP was found in the home. His neighbors also had no trouble telling anyone who would listen that Angelo Sr. acted like a man under the influence of angel dust.
We can now see that illicit drugs had nothing to do with Angelo Mendoza Senior’s attack on his son, Angelo Mendoza Jr. Instead, he was in the throws of withdrawal from his prescribed medication used to treat his paralysis and the seizures he suffered from.
Also, Mendoza was almost declared incompetent to stand trial at an earlier hearing. I found an article on this earlier hearing, on July 22nd, 2009, which may more clearly explain why he is unfit for trial. Here are some excerpts:
Mendoza has been examined by Dr. Carol Hendrix, a psychologist, who found that Mendoza is not competent to stand trial unless he regularly gets medication to control seizures and paralysis problems, defense attorney Richard Terry said.
Terry noted that without his medication, Mendoza can have side effects as serious as death. He alluded to problems Mendoza may be having with the jail on whether he’s being taken to his doctor’s office to get medication as often as he needs.
That prompted Judge Jerold Turner to say, “The sheriff’s office has been put on notice. If something happens the county is on the hook. He needs to be transported to obtain his medication.”
The judge also said that unless another opinion was issued, he would have to find that Mendoza was not mentally competent to stand trial.
Medication will be an important issue in any trial that Mendoza has on mayhem and torture charges in the April 28 biting attack on his son, Angelo Mendoza Jr.
During a June 16 hearing, Mendoza appropriately answered questions froth the judge in a strong voice. But a week later, Mendoza was not brought to court and his attorney said Mendoza was at Kern Medical Center and unable to talk at all.
That’s when Terry asked for Mendoza to be examined to determine if he was competent to stand trial.
It looks like Angelo Mendoza Sr. may not be the monster we all believed him to be (and justifiably so, given the information we had to work with). It’s a relief for me to know that he isn’t as evil as I imagined him to be. All I find myself feeling for the man now is compassion and sadness.
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Give him the meds then…
How bad are the withdrawals that you do something so vicious to a kid? How many more excuses will be made…?
They’re not excuses man. The cops were at Angelo SR’s house earlier that day, and he told them he wasn’t taking his medication, and that he was seeing things that weren’t there. Obviously the stuff he was taking was heavy duty. Nobody is harder on these people than I am, and I don’t think this is some defense lawyer trick. I don’t think he should get custody of his son back, but he deserves a break.
I’ll trust you judgement…….
Did you read about the woman who let a child dehydrate here in CT?
She got off light because they say she has the mental capacity of a 6 year old…… hmmmm if she has an apartment and all that I think she’s a little smarter than a 6 year old
As far as this guy goes – he should never have the kid again, but should be able to visit him.
The real monster is the person who injured this man and ruined his life, but so many defense attys abuse the incompetency card so often now that it has prejudiced me and many others when ever it is used. So while this guy does not deseve hell as an afterlife because he has it now, so many of the people who are judged incompetent deserve hell just for lying!
I think the guilt he feels, or will feel after they get the medication figured out is more than enough punishment for him.
I’m having a hard time feeling much compassion for him still. Why did he go off his meds? He was competent enough to say that was the issue that caused his behavior. What gives???
i dont feel jack shit for this man, other than disgust and contempt. i don’t care if you’re ‘incompetent’ – you don’t bite your own child’s eye out.
just because someone is mentally ill doesn’t mean they can’t be evil as well.
I agree. He deserves to be force fed his meds and NEVER EVER REPRODUCE OR BE AROUND ANY CHILD AGAIN.
I feel that his dependence on a foreign substance just to make him sane is more of a reason to keep him separated from society. What about the next time he feels like going off his meds? I don’t see why we should endanger the public by putting him back on his meds and releasing him into the general public. My mother has severe mental issues (to put it nicely), but I think everyone is responsible for their own actions. Whether they are in a proper frame of mind or not. We as a civilized society should punish for the action not cause.
I agree – the state lunatic system needs to be brought back.
Not the system that was closed down starting in the 1960′s, but the system that was formed in the 1860”s. While not perfect, the “systeM; was able in some instances, where it cost the state nothing as these places were small closed societies with in themselves!.
Remember Glenn Idalski?
Remember when he went to court and said he went off his meds WILLINGLY and “couldn’t control his urges”. Even after saying this he was released on bond after telling the court he would continue taking his meds and attending treatment–well low and behold, a year later he molested a disabled child in his church. He went off his meds again.
There is no guaranteeing someone is going to continue treatment if they are left to their own devices–certainly, I believe they need to be somewhere under constant supervision to prevent lapses in treatment, in essence, preventing harm to others.
Don’t get me wrong – I don’t think Angelo Sr. is capable of taking care of himself and needs to be in a locked facility for the rest of his life. I just think this is one of those rare cases where the guy is really not fully responsible for his actions. Yes, he should have been taking his medication, but I’m not sure he would have hurt his son if he was in his right mind.
I don’t know, maybe I’m getting soft in my old age – I just turned 50 in June, so who knows?
50 – OMG that’s like 1/2 a century!
That means you were born in 1959, graduated high school in the 1970′s.
So much for your youthful 40′s!!
Very good Fred – class of 1977 at Fairfield Prep, but I haven’t felt youthful since my 20s.
Yeah Max… I was born the following winter.
Max,
Don’t want to make you feel older, unless you’re a complete retard you graduated HS before I was even born. Probably college even. LOL sorry had to poke a little fun at the EIC
Yeah, and that’s 50 in junkie years omar, which is like 75 in human years. Let’s face it, I’m crawling my way to the big finish line in the sky, and I’m doing it at’ double time.
I agree with this comment!! I remember from the original story that the mom was delivering pizza’s and stopped by the home on a delivery run. At that time the child was pleading that she take him with her. I think that the mom should have more of this hung on her…..she knew that the father was unstable and she should have done everything that she could do to protect her child and to get him away from the person that potentially could and actually did physically and mentally scar her child for life.
To not consider him a monster is a mistake. I work in the mental health arena and am aggravated when people who are aware of their diagnosis and the effects this illness could lead to CHOOSE not to take the medications that can control their symptoms and allow them to live as everyone else. The only time I accept that mental illness or medical conditions play a role is when the client has never been diagnosed and presented with the knowledge and opportunity to do what is healthy for them and those around them.
Justice has not been served in this case. This man has no reason to be living and breathing anymore. So what happens later on when does not take his medication again if he is free? He was obviously not capable of taking his medication on his own before, and this precious boy is the one who paid for it. Maybe he is really mentally ill…but his little boy is the one who will be affected by this for the REST of his life, physically and emotionally. EVERYONE that was involved in this before this happened failed little Angel, CPS, his own “mother” and the list goes on. Everyone who was supposed to protect this little boy failed miserably. And on top of it all, my tax dollars may go to keeping this “man” in a county mental facility on top of this?
I predict this thread will morph into another Otty Sanchez discussion very soon.
I hate reading about kids being hurt by their parents. I agree with Max here I defiantly think his discontinuing of medications played a huge role in this situation. Mental illness is no joke. Show this story to Tom Cruise see if he changes his tune at all.
I feel for the man now. I used to think that mentally unsound people had control over their actions but after seeing one friend and one family member go through actual breakdowns I know better. I had known both my entire life and they did become different people and did things that I would have thought them incapable of previously. I hope this guy gets the help he needs and becomes a better person.
wow im disappointed max. so we should feel compassion for him because he was going through withdrawal? he ate his kids eyes. his son will never be the same…and you know jr is going to have issues what happens when he does something crazy do we give him a pass because of this? do we start feeling bad and giving these mothers who have PPD a pass? I had PPD and that shits crazy…i thought some tapped things but i never acted on them…where do we draw the line then?
Women “get a pass” when they commit crimes while psychotic, not when they’re suffering from your garden variety PPD.
I know the popular thing here is to go “Raa raa, hang ‘em from the highest rafter!”, but I’m inclined to believe the testimony of medical professionals who’ve spent decades of their lives studying these disorders.
That doesn’t mean these women or other legitimately mentally ill people should have zero accountability (some should be in a mental hospital for life), but there is a distinction to be made between cold-blooded sociopaths and people who are truly out of touch with reality.
We have too many people in this world anyways.
Definately HANG EM and send them to HELL.
Personally, after reading this update, I place even more blame on the mother of little Angelo and on the people who must have been in contact with Angelo Sr. Knowing that this man relied heavily on his meds and failing to notice any changes in his behavior??? I don’t know enough about different types of mental illnesses and medications to judge whether or not his illness is fully to blame, but certainly is played a part and the sane people around him should have been more concerned with little Angelo than they were.
When I thought the guy was on PCP, I was like, how can you take PCP while in the presence of your child, knowing what PCP can cause people to do? I thought it was a stupid and irresponsible thing to do, but not necessarily evil. I mean, the guy did hack away at his own legs. It wasn’t like he saved the sadism solely for his son. I get irritated at people who stop taking their medication, but having first hand experience through friends and relatives who suffer from various forms of psychosis, I can understand why they do so. The medicine often keeps your outbursts under control by basically turning you into a zombie. You feel nothing. I can imagine how that would suck. Regardless, I wouldn’t say Hell for this man. Mental hospital, yes, but not Hell.
I still don’t feel sorry for him. He should have been on the meds. The child’s mom was there and I am sure she could have helped him out if getting them was a problem. I also don’t think his doctor recommended that he just stop taking the medication.
Maybe he shouldn’t be boiled in bleach but he still had an obligation to care for the child and take his medication.
I think Angelo should be court-mandated to live in a Long Term Structured Facility for the rest of his life. These are locked, supervised facilities and peoples’ medications are administered to them so there’s no issue of being non-compliant with medications.
Fred–I hope you were kidding about advocating the asylum system of the 19th century? People were locked and chained in dirty areas and treated like animals. Surely we’ve advanced beyond that in our treatment of the mentally ill.
I don’t know what Angelo’s motive was for not taking his medication when the ax/eye-biting incident occurred. Maybe he was trying to wean himself off the meds because he didn’t want to be dependent on them anymore. Maybe he thought he no longer needed them, or maybe he could no longer afford them. Maybe there were troublesome side effects of the medication. It’s hard to judge without knowing the details of the situation. I know that many people with schizophrenia stop taking their meds when they feel better because they don’t believe they need them anymore, and because of the side effects…this type of faulty judgment is part of the illness, though, and it’s up to their families to get them help when the psychotic symptoms begin to resurface.
I don’t think you’re getting soft, Max….stories like this are just sad. I’m glad the little boy lived and regained sight in his one eye. The real person responsible for this situation is the man who attacked and injured Angelo…he deserves to go to hell.
he has at least 22 prior criminal court cases, including a no contest plea in April 2006 on misdemeanor willful cruelty to a child, for which he served probation. And yet, he was granted full custody of little Angelo. I have no sympathy for him at all. He has hurt children before and should never had been caring for Angelo. And neither should his POS mother, leaving him when he’s crying and begging and saying “I’m scared” what a bitch.
This one has haunted me and haunted me. Never let him free.
I agree Max …. I think this guy deserves a break. I have had a lot of personal experience watching the effects heavy prescription narcotics can have on a person. They can change a person entirely and make them paranoid, scared and delusional.
Often people taking these medications are terrified of what the medications are doing to them so they will stop taking them….. only problem is most legal narcotics are highly addictive and their body becomes dependent on them…. the withdrawals are something else all together and can cause worse side effects than remaining on the drug. It’s a horrible catch 22 cycle and it’s an absolute shame it ended this way.
While I admit I’m a little bias as I HATE prescription drugs and refuse to take them myself. I really feel this man and his family have suffered enough and I hope he can heal, even just a little bit, body, mind and soul.
P.S- Just to clarify I’m not saying this guy should be set free, he is obviously a danger to himself and others. I just think he needs some proper medical help….not to rot in jail.
A break??????
Fuck no, he did it now it is time to pay for it. Some people just cant bring them self to give back to the scumbag what he dished out. Insanity sould never be a reason to not dole out what these rejects have coming to them. To many folks want to give help to these people but in the long run it does not work. They get out and go right back to what they were doing when they GOT CAUGHT the first or second or third time. At the minimun this assbag needs life in hell for what he did to that child. Meds will only work if shitbags like this keep taking them, But time after time we see that they stop taking them, So why bother?
when are the PEOPLE going to determine the level of authority for police officers? in my opinion, the police do not have enough authority. this man, clearly delusional, would have been in custody for a 72-hour hold at arrowhead regional, had not the police been hampered by the rules and regulations imposed upon them by the lawyers who write (and rewrite, ad nauseam) case law in our country. his son would have been spared, and this man would not be on his way to Patton (where i work, incidentally). rule of law, my ass. when are we going to insist upon a rule of common sense?
The only person I feel sorry for in this case is the child.
I have taken some crazy drugs in my life – but never would I hurt an innocent child – no matter what I was seeing.
Dude might be fucked up in the head – but he still should be locked up for a long long time.
No meds for this scum. He needs to face the music for what he did.
And on his way to prison he needs to have both his eyes ripped out with a red hot poker.
The mom definitely should be held accountable as well. Her baby was scared and screaming for her–that would have been enough for me to check out the situation, grab my son, and call emergency services for the father.
This guy needs to live in an assisted living facility for sure, if only to make sure that he stays compliant with his treatment plan.
Who gives a shit if he didn’t take his meds? His own fault. He should still rot in prison with a couple fat cocks rammed inside HIS eyesockets.
Or better yet, just give him enough PCP until he eats his OWN EYES out. Perhaps that’d be a little bit more fair?
And for those of you who believe the mother about how she actually thought twice about taking the kid.
For those of you who know you would look into what’s going on the minute your child screamed for help.
Wonder why she doesn’t have custody? She walked out of that house and couldn’t give a horses ass about her son. Because she needed to go find some more shit
For those of you not in the know, shit is methamphetamines.
Or whatever drug you can get that’s speedy and makes you think your baby has candy buttons for eyes.
Thanks for the update on the child. I’m glad he has vision in one eye. When I first heard this story it broke my heart. I just hope that child can grow up in a supportive, stable environment. No kid should have to go through that.