NASSAU, Fla. — Just 80 pounds following a hunger strike and allegedly prone to spreading and throwing feces, Kimberly Kessler has presented mental health issues almost since her arrest on murder charges in 2018.
Now, a doctor has found her mentally incompetent to stand trial, according to court records.
A determination of mental incompetence means that she is unable to either comprehend the charges and penalties she faces, or assist with her own defense.
She was previously deemed incompetent to stand trial in 2020, but Circuit Judge James Daniel overruled that determination. At the time he said, “as extreme as Defendant’s behavior has been, it does not automatically mean she is incompetent for the purpose of standing trial.”
Kessler is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 34-year-old Joleen Cummings, a mother of three who ran a Yulee hair salon where Kessler worked.
Cummings went missing on Mother's Day in 2018. Her body was never found and the Nassau County Sheriff's Office believes she is dead.
Kessler's competency hearing before Judge Daniel is set for June 30.