Accused killer to have competency hearing

Wilbert Thibodeaux, 49, who is accused of killing Chitimacha Police Sgt. Rick Riggenbach and a 78-year-old Charenton man, and then attempting to kill two St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies in 2013 in Charenton, is set to have a hearing Thursday to determine his competency to proceed to trial.
The competency hearing is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Thursday and is scheduled to continue at 9 a.m. Friday at the St. Mary Parish Courthouse, according to St. Mary Parish Clerk of Court records. Thibodeaux will appear before Judge Keith Comeaux in the 16th Judicial District Court.
On Jan. 26, 2013, Riggenbach was responding to a 911 call on Flattown Road in Charenton and came into contact with Thibodeaux, who was armed with a shotgun, according to the affidavit for Thibodeaux’s arrest.
Thibodeaux then shot and killed Riggenbach, the affidavit stated. St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies Matthew Strickland and Jason Javier also responded to the call, and were shot by Thibodeaux with the same shotgun, the affidavit said.
Thibodeaux also set fire to a residence in the 1100 block of Flattown Road using a gas accelerant, the affidavit stated. The body of Eddie Lyons, 78, was recovered inside the debris of the burnt residence, the affidavit said. Additionally, Thibodeaux set fire to a truck located outside the residence, the affidavit said.
Also on Jan. 26, 2013, Thibodeaux was charged with first degree murder of a police officer, first degree murder, two counts of attempted first degree murder of a police officer and simple arson in connection with the incident.
On Nov. 10, Thibodeaux’s co-counsel Nancy Dunning, requested that a subpoena duces tecum be issued ordering Nicolette August or the Custodian of Records in the Department of Family and Children’s Services in St. Martinville to appear in court to provide the complete case file relating to Wilbert Thibodeaux, Harvey Lee Thibodeaux, Wilbur Thibodeaux, Hazel Alexander Thibodeaux and McAlvin Jones Sr., according to clerk of court records. Hazel Alexander Thibodeaux and McAlvin Jones Sr. are Thibodeaux’s biological parents, according to court records.
If convicted of the two counts of first degree murder, Thibodeaux risks a death sentence, the motion for subpoena said. As a capital defendant, the motion cited a Supreme Court case that said the courts must provide defendants, such as Thibodeaux, with special accommodations, considerations and protections that the constitution provides nowhere else at all stages of a capital trial, including the punishment phase, clerk of court records stated.
Thibodeaux has a lifelong history of schizophrenia and his current mental state has prevented him from providing reliable information to his counsel regarding his biological family and social history, according to the motion for subpoena.
The motion states, “It is impossible for the defense team in this case to perform the constitutionally-required mitigation investigation without access to the records of the Department of Children and Family Services, especially in light of Mr. Thibodeaux’s current mental state. One of the many reasons Mr. Thibodeaux is incompetent to proceed to trial is because he cannot provide counsel with accurate information about his own life.”
Thibodeaux’s counsel is seeking Department of Child and Family Services files related to the investigation, which led to Thibodeaux’s removal from the home of his biological mother as well as any other investigation involving Thibodeaux, his siblings or either of Thibodeaux’s biological parents, the motion said.
Despite the confidentiality of Department of Children and Family Services records, the motion says that under the circumstances, Thibodeaux is entitled to the information both under state law and under his state and federal constitutional rights.