Man charged in fatal Hamilton shooting to get second competency evaluation

A man facing murder and felonious assault charges for the June shooting death of Tracy Miller in a parking lot outside a Hamilton bar will receive a second evaluation for competency to stand trial.

Ramello Devonte Mathews, 29, with court-listed addresses in Hamilton and Cincinnati, was back Monday in Butler County Common Pleas Court before Judge Greg Stephens for a competency evaluation hearing that was ordered Sept. 11 at the request of the defense.

Defense attorney William Oswall Jr. filed a motion requesting the evaluation, stating Mathews “may have a mental disease or defect ... that made him unable to fully comprehend the proceedings in the court at this time and/or unable to assist counsel in preparation and defense of his case.”

After reviewing the results of that evaluation, a second evaluation was requested by the prosecution. That likely means the first evaluation suggested Mathews is incompetent, leading to a request for a second evaluation by prosecutors. Legally, the evaluation results are not made public but the judge will make a final ruling based on all evaluations.

Mathews is scheduled to be back on court Nov. 11 for the second evaluation hearing.

He was arrested two days after the June 25 shooting in the parking lot outside the Dayton Lane Pub. He is being held in lieu of $1 million bond.

Credit: Nick Graham

Credit: Nick Graham

Miller, 34, of Hamilton, died at a hospital following the shooting in the 1100 block of Dayton Street about 2:40 a.m. June 25.

The shooting happened behind the Dayton Lane Pub where Miller had been a patron, according to his family. He was “found unconscious in his vehicle with two gunshot wounds,” according to the police report.

Miller was shot twice in the chest, but he may not have been in the car when he was shot — a full round was found in front of a car tire, according to police and dispatch records.

When arrested, Mathews was in possession of a loaded 9-millimeter handgun in the pocket of a sweatshirt jacket, according to police and court records.

A male placed a 911 call telling the dispatcher, “We are at Dayton Lane Pub. Shots fired. Boy is in his car, I think he has been shot.”

Miller worked at an area concrete company and loved softball and baseball, said Angela Downard, his aunt.

Miller attended Hamilton High School and was raised by his grandmother, so he also spent several years in Kentucky, she said.

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