NEW YORK _ El Chapo needs his head examined.
The Mexican drug kingpin and escape expert hears things, is depressed, repeats himself and forgets what he's talking about, according to a new defense filing.
A. Eduardo Balarezo, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's lawyer, is asking for a court order to get a neuropsychologist in the same room with his client to thoroughly evaluate his 60-year-old client.
Since Guzman's January extradition from Mexico to a solitary cell in a lower Manhattan lock up, defense lawyers have complained about the harsh conditions and their effects on Guzman.
But in the last month, there's been a "marked deterioration" in his mental state, Balarezo said.
"Counsel and Mr. Guzman engage in what to an outsider may appear to be normal conversation; however, it is plain to the defense team that something is not right with Mr. Guzman," Balarezo told Judge Brian Cogan.
Guzman's suffering constant headaches, ringing ears and throat pain, Balarezo said in his Thursday letter. He said Guzman can't sleep well in his constantly lit, frigid cell, lacks clean bedding and is all but shut off from the world except for his defense team. Guzman can't even buy bottled water or batteries for his radio at the canteen.
Balarezo made it clear he's not saying Guzman is not mentally fit for his April 2018 trial.
"Rather, counsel suggests that Mr. Guzman's condition may eventually result in a finding of incompetence if it is not addressed soon," he wrote.
The lawyer said one certified clinical neuropsychologist told him she can do the evaluation in a "non-contact visit." But the conditions, including a plexiglass divider between her and Guzman, could make for an "incorrect diagnosis or evaluation."
Cogan previously rejected attempts by the defense counsel to have contact visits with Guzman. Prosecutors and Metropolitan Correctional Center staff said they couldn't safely accommodate the request.
And when Guzman's first lawyers, a set of public defenders, tried to have the human rights group Amnesty International check out Guzman's conditions, Cogan rebuffed the effort.
