DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The man accused of randomly attacking, stabbing and killing a couple in Daytona Beach during Bike Week last year was in court Monday for the first day of his competency hearing.
Jean Macean, 32, is facing two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the the killings of Terry and Brenda Aultman.
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State prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Macean, but his defense’s experts question if he’s even competent enough to be in court.
Macean is accused of killing and slashing the couple’s throats on March 6, 2022, on Wild Olive Avenue. Police said the couple was riding their bicycles home from Bike Week festivities when Macean went after them with a knife. Police said he was caught days later in Orlando and admitted to the murders.
“Thought disorganization, confusion, auditory hallucinations, visual hallucinations qualify him for schizophrenia,” said the defense’s psychology expert, Dr. Julie Harper.
In the competency hearing, Harper said Macean is likely schizophrenic.
Macean came to the Orlando area from Haiti at 11 years old. Harper said she evaluated him twice, reviewed his school records and reports documenting his nine months so far in jail.
“The auditory hallucinations had been effecting him for years, back to childhood. He also was able to identify that when he’s experiencing stress, he’ll have more sound or interference with the sounds and voices getting louder,” she said.
If at the end of the hearing the judge agrees Macean is mentally incompetent, the case will be put on hold while he receives medical treatment until doctors determine he’s competent enough to proceed.
“There are intrusions of these auditory hallucinations while he’s trying to do his legal work that is very concerning.,” Harper said.
The hearing will pick back up on Wednesday when prosecutors then have a chance to argue against the competency case.
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