A judge wants more information before determining whether the man accused of shooting and killing Millard County Sheriff's Deputy Josie Greathouse Fox is mentally retarded under the law.

Roberto Miramontes Román's IQ is "at or below" 70, a number generally considered the cutoff for mental retardation, defense attorney Stephen McCaughey said. But only one of the three doctors who has evaluated Román has definitively said the man is mentally retarded.

"The other two doctors issued a report that was sort of inconclusive," McCaughey said following a hearing Friday in 4th District Court.

Judge Donald Eyre ordered more evaluations for Roman and set a two-day hearing on the matter for March.

If Román were found to be mentally retarded, it would preclude prosecutors from seeking the death penalty.

Attempts to reach prosecutors for comment were not successful Friday.

According to charging documents, Román, 39, shot and killed the 37-year-old Fox during a traffic stop on Jan. 5, 2010. Fox had stopped the car because Román had allegedly been involved in a drug deal just minutes before.

When Fox walked up to the car and asked for license and registration, Román pointed the barrel of an AK-47 out the driver-side window and fired, according to testimony.

Another man, Rubén Chávez-Reyes, is currently serving time in prison for helping Román evade police following the shooting.

afalk@sltrib.com