This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A 33-year-old Monroe man accused of killing his father more than three years ago is still not competent to stand trial, a judge has determined.
William C. Lawton is charged in 6th District Court with aggravated murder, a first-degree felony, in the July 2011 death of 77-year-old James Lawton.
On Wednesday, 6th District Judge Marvin Bagley ordered Lawton to continue treatment at the Utah State Hospital, where he has been since June 2013.
Defense attorney Douglas Neeley reported the defendant is making progress, and both Neeley and Sevier County Attorney Dale Eyre agreed it is possible his competency can be restored, according to the court docket.
A review hearing is set for Aug. 25.
About 2 a.m. on July 17, 2011, William Lawton called police and reported that he had been in a car crash and that his father had been attacked in the mountains west of Elsinore before the crash, according to a probable cause statement.
Lawton took police to the spot on the mountain where he said the attack had happened. There, police found the body of James Lawton, who had been attacked with "multiple weapons," court documents state, including several post-mortem injuries.
Investigators said evidence at the scene "did not support" the son's story.
In interviews with police, Lawton's mother said her husband and son went to Richfield about 10:30 the night before. A few hours later, William Lawton returned home with blood on his hands and clothes, according to his mother's statements to police. He was carrying a spool of twine similar to that found by police at the crime scene, court documents state.
William Lawton had a history of violence against his father, a search of court records shows. In 2010, Lawton pleaded guilty to class B misdemeanor counts of assault and theft, admitting that he threw things at his father and stole a radio from him.
Police said there was "evidence of a current dispute" between Lawton and his father at the time of the slaying.