LAKEPORT, Calif. – A Clearlake man charged with the murder of his wife will undergo an evaluation to determine his mental competence.

Eddie Lee Gillespie, 51, of Clearlake was due in Lake County Superior Court on Friday morning for a preliminary hearing in connection with the May 25 shooting death of his estranged wife, Tracey Gillespie, 52, of Clearlake Oaks.

Eddie Gillespie is charged with murder and a special allegation of using a gun, and a lesser included offense of assault with a firearm and special allegations of using a firearm and causing great bodily injury, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff, who is handling the case.

Gillespie faces a maximum of 50 years to life if convicted of all charges, Hinchcliff said.

The case began the day in Judge Andrew Blum's Department 3 courtroom, but an apparent backlog of cases prevented the case from being heard in the morning.

Blum arranged to have it transferred to Department 2 and Judge Richard Martin, who took up the case around 2 p.m., with friends and family of the defendant and the victim having followed the case from one courtroom to another.

When Martin took up the case, he asked, “Are both sides ready to go?”

Gillespie's attorney, Stephen Carter, indicated he was ready but he had a new concern.

That afternoon one of the correctional officers brought Carter information that caused him to question Gillespie's mental competence, or his ability to understand what is taking place in the court proceedings – a different matter altogether from sanity.

“It appears to me that he is deteriorating,” said Carter.

As a result, Carter said he had “a significant doubt” regarding Gillespie's competence, with the additional concern that Gillespie would be incapable of assisting in his own defense.

Martin asked if Gillespie had a different opinion. Carter say he may. Gillespie remained silent throughout the hearing.

Carter said he and Hinchcliff agreed to have two doctors evaluate Gillespie. Martin suggested they use the services of Dr. Chris Fischer, who lives in the county and whose thorough work has impressed the judge. Martin suggested they also go with Dr. Douglas Rosoff, who lives in close proximity to the county, which could help the evaluation be completed more quickly.

Martin temporarily suspended the criminal proceedings until the doctors can evaluate Gillespie's competency.

Noting that the general turnaround for such evaluations is three to four weeks, Martin added another few weeks for the prosecution and defense to review the doctors' findings. He scheduled the next hearing for a review of the findings at 9 a.m. Oct. 1 in Department 3 before Judge Blum.

Gillespie has remained in the Lake County Jail since his arrest on the day of his wife's shooting, with bail set at $1.5 million.

Martin said he was going to leave that bail amount in place until they can review the competency issues. If Gillespie is found incompetent, Martin said he might remove the bail possibility altogether.

Carter noted that it is Rosoff's habit to come to Lake County for evaluations, and emphasized that he doesn't want Gillespie to be transported out of the county.

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