CRIME: MENTAL EXAMS ORDERED IN KILLING

OTTAWA, Ill. -- A Scott City, Mo., man accused of dismembering a woman and putting the pieces into three portable coolers will be examined by two psychiatrists to determine if he is mentally fit to stand trial.

Richard G. Meyer, 42, faces two counts of first-degree murder, one count of concealing a homicide and one count of criminal damage to property in connection with the July 11 death of Ernestina M. Hinojosa, 43, of Kennewick, Wash.

Police believe that Meyer met Hinojosa in a motel bar, then a few hours later took her to his room, where she was killed. Meyer told police he put her remains into the coolers and dumped them in a cornfield five minutes from his motel in Peru, Ill.

The appointment of two psychiatrists, one by the public defender's office and the other by the prosecutor, will be the final court action taken in the case before a hearing on Dec. 1, said LaSalle County State's Attorney Mike James. James, whose term as prosecutor expires Nov. 30, said no further action is likely until next year. A new prosecutor will be elected next month, and a judge likely will give him more than a month to review the case after Dec. 1.

Relatives of Meyer have said that he had been taking prescription medication to treat a manic-depressive disorder.

Generally, deputies escort an inmate to the psychiatrist's office for a six-to-eight-hour evaluation, James said. But most of the psychiatrist's work takes place after the interview when statements and reactions are analyzed, he said.

"Technically, both psychiatrists work for the court," James said.

Police in Peru had few leads in the killing until July 17, when Meyer was arrested in Rock Island, Ill., after he was found by police lying on a sidewalk with facial injuries.

The police learned of a warrant against Meyer for criminal damage to property stemming from the discovery of a hacksaw, knife and a large amount of blood in Meyer's motel room. Motel staff had entered the room to investigate blood dripping from the ceiling beneath his second-floor room.