Iowa woman accused of racist attacks to undergo mental tests

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A judge Monday approved a competency evaluation of a woman accused of hate crimes in the Des Moines area, including intentionally running over a girl she thought was Mexican.

The attorney for Nicole Poole, 42, told a judge Monday that he’d only just met Poole but that he believes she has a mental disorder and is incompetent to stand trial.

Polk County Attorney John Sarcone didn’t fight the request from Poole’s court-appointed attorney, Matthew Sheeley, The Des Moines Register reported.

Poole is charged with assault in violation of individual rights for an incident at a convenience store and with attempted murder for allegedly running over two children with her SUV. Both children survived.



FILE - In this undated file photo provided by the Polk County (Iowa) Jail is Nicole Franklin. Franklin, who told police she intentionally ran over a teenager because she believed the girl was Mexican, has been charged with another hit-and-run crash on Dec. 9, 2019 that hurt a 12-year-old boy. In the latest charge, Franklin was accused of hitting a boy in a Des Moines apartment complex. The boy suffered minor injuries. (Polk County Jail via AP, File)


Read more: https://apnews.com/152cb287081d72ddaa2cb4f130df7361

[47of74]

1. In any event I hope she goes away for a long time.

The rest of her life would be about right.

[bucolic_frolic]

4. How could they let her drive again?

And if they seize her driver's license, she could find some other weapon. Mental disorder or not, dangerous to the public!

[GReedDiamond]

15. If they seize her driver's license, she could still drive a car, as a weapon or not...

...point being, there's no other weapon needed. Unless her car is confiscated, she could still "drive" it.

Not having a DL has never stopped many from going ahead and driving - often badly and criminally.

Just watch one episode of "Live PD."

Mental disorder or not, dangerous to the public!

Yes, which is why, even if considered unfit to stand trial, she needs to be committed to a state hospital for criminally insane people.

[getagrip_already]

9. 6 months, 12 steps, and a pastor's letter of recommendation later......

She will be free, with a big dollar position as a director of human rights with ICE.

Don't worry, she will have 24x7 security to keep anyone who looks hispanic out of the way of her limo, or at the very least, to provide a valid reason to have opened fire.

Good things come to those that mame.....

[Journeyman]

2. I hope she gets the help she needs. I hope we all get the help we so desperately need . . .

[Skittles]

3. yes

it seems like a mental health evaluation should have been done some time ago - this goes beyond racism

[hedda_foil]

6. It was done after she ran over the 12 year old black boy and she was found competent to stand trial.

It's at the link. Unfortunately, the first victim didn't want to testify so the case was dropped.

[Skittles]

7. ooh

that does seem odd

[getagrip_already]

10. in a case like that....

The victim doesn't need to press charges. The state could do that. Crimes against a child don't require the child or her family consent to a prosecution, or even need to ask for one. In most states, it can be done by the state, not the victim. Especially when there is video. And a confession.

But its not surprising she was pressured to no press charges. If any member of her family was undocumented, it would be an awful burden.... Which is why they are normally shielded. Normally. But this isn't normal in any way.

[tulipsandroses]

13. The case that was dropped was the case against her boyfriend

She was found competent to stand trial in that case. However the boyfriend did not want to testify. Thats why the case was dropped. I am guessing there were no witnesses that saw her saw her stab him. So if the victim is not willing to say she was the attacker, it would have been hard to get a conviction.

This woman is a danger to society. Yes she has mental health and substance abuse issues. However, more than one things can be true. She is also someone that is a danger to society who harbors hate. She can get mental health treatment while serving a prison sentence.

[AtheistCrusader]

5. I'm just going to go ahead and assume a 'fail' here.

At least in an institution she has a hope of getting better, and the public will be safe from her as long as she's committed.

[Evolve Dammit]

8. It seems by the photo that she has an aura of self-confidence and inner contentedness.

Not my problem. It's the libruls and all those foreigners that are draggin' us down. So we run 'em over. What's the problem?? How do people get so demented?

[FiveGoodMen]

17. "How do people get so demented?"

They listen to hate radio and the mega-church preachers.

[Evolve Dammit]

19. Could be that simple. Brainwashing 24/7/365

[FiveGoodMen]

20. That's my impression of it.

[Lonestarblue]

11. If anger and hatred toward minorities is just a mental problem,

then most of Trump’s supporters can be said to have mental illness. What is the treatment for millions of such people? Most people don’t act on their hatred, but Trump has given the green light to those who are willing to act.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

12. Racism is not a mental disorder, but people with mental disorders are particularly vulnerable to

acting out the strongest factors in our culture, one of which is of course racism.

[tulipsandroses]

14. The failure here is the justice system. Why was this woman not in jail before this?

[link:http://www.startribune.com/iowa-hate-crimes-suspect-got-breaks-after-earlier-arrests/566515292/|
IOWA CITY, Iowa — She was charged with stabbing one boyfriend in the chest in 2017 and, months later, with threatening another with a butcher’s knife. She allegedly told her ex-husband that she was going to kill him during a child custody dispute.

Despite her violence and threats, chronic drug use and mental health problems over the last three years, Nicole Poole caught several breaks from Iowa’s criminal justice system, court records show. The 42-year-old unemployed white woman was allowed to stay out of prison and treatment before she allegedly committed a shocking string of racially-motivated attacks this month.

I work in community mental health and have seen clients get violation of probation for testing positive for marijuana - moving without telling their probation officers, abuse of 911, getting into a fight where the police gets called and other minor infractions that results in violations - which sends them back to jail for several months. Why was she still on the streets? No you cannot force someone into sobriety or treatment, but when someone is clearly showing that they are a danger, you can't just allow them to continue to stay on the streets.

[ck4829]

16. Good question

[Whiskeytide]

18. Does the DSM-5 have a ...

... “racist asshole” classification?