Wolever to get 2nd competency evaluation

Kevin Wolever, the Toledo man accused of attacking a fire station in East Toledo, is arraigned in Toledo Municipal Court. THE BLADE Enlarge | Photo Reprints

A former city fire inspector – and the son of former Fire Chief Mike Wolever – will undergo a second evaluation to determine if he is eligible for a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity for a series of alleged shootings at local fire stations.

Kevin Wolever, 32, appeared in Lucas County Common Pleas Court Wednesday where the results of a first evaluation were made public. Judge Linda Jennings referred to a Jan. 9 report from the Court Diagnostic and Treatment Center that opined that Mr. Wolever did not meet the criteria for a not guilty by reason of insanity plea.

“At the time of these offenses, [Mr. Wolever] did not suffer from a mental disease or defect that would have prevented him from knowing the wrongfulness of his acts,” the judge read from the report.

Mr. Wolever of 801 Nevada St. was charged in October with two counts of improperly discharging a firearm into a habitation and one count each of aggravated arson and felonious assault, for three incidents. Three of the charges had gun specifications, including one five-year specification for shooting out of a motor vehicle. If convicted, Mr. Wolever faces up to 48 years in prison.

Attorney George Gerken requested that Mr. Wolever be evaluated by a doctor from University Hospitals in Cleveland. Judge Jennings set a Feb. 22 hearing date to review the findings.

Mr. Wolever has been in custody since Sept. 24, when he was charged with shooting at a fire station. He remains in the Lucas County jail in lieu of $300,000 bond.

According to the Oct. 3 indictment, Mr. Wolever is charged with shooting at Station 6, 642 Starr Ave., once on Sept. 21 and again on Sept. 24, during which time an on-duty firefighter was struck by a ricocheting bullet. He is also charged with aggravated arson for allegedly leaving an incendiary device outside Station 18, 5221 Lewis Ave., on Sept. 22.

At the time of the alleged incidents, Mr. Wolever was on paid leave from his job for conduct that included failing to show up at work because he went to a strip club or had gone home to take a nap, according to written reprimands from his superiors. He was fired from his job Oct. 5, after he failed to appear at a hearing.

Mr. Gerken noted during court that he was only briefly able to review the Jan. 9 report with Mr. Wolever and his family. Several family members, including the former chief who retired this summer, were in the courtroom.

Mr. Gerken declined further comment after the hearing.

Under Ohio law, a person is not guilty by reason of insanity “only if the person proves … that at the time of the commission of the offense, the person did not know, as a result of a severe mental disease or defect, the wrongfulness of the person’s acts.”

Contact Erica Blake at: eblake@theblade.com or 419-213-2134.