Schizophrenia

...ba href=/schizophrenia/a/b, but one thing about my illness, I never lost my drivers license," Alexander says.

Alexander says he's living proof that if state government makes a small investment, the disabled can contribute to society.

Jenette Ophein (oh-PYN) of Milford is hearing impaired and suffers from depression.

Her state assistance covers a psychiatric rehabilitation program that not only addresses her mental health needs, but teaches her job skills.

But she says transportation is a big issue for her because she lives in rural Iowa."For example, for me to go from Milford to Spencer to college to better my job skills, it's like 24 dollars one-way," Opheim says.

By comparison, if she lived in the Des Moines area, she could get a 15-dollar, one-month bus pass to travel anywhere she wanted that's on the bus line.

Ophein says state government needs to address that "discrepancy." Advocates for the disabled warn legislators that counties will reduce services for Ophein and other mentally disabled Iowans unless state funding is increased.See other items about...(choose a keyword...)Politics & Governmenthealth & medicineWednesday, March 29, 2006, 4:33 PM Subscribe to our News feed - About RSSState Forecast AgricultureBusinessCrime & CourtsEducationEnvironment & ConservationFires/Accidents/DisastersHealth & MedicineHuman InterestLegislatureMilitaryPolitics & GovernmentRecreation & EntertainmentSportsTaxesTransportationWeatherTel: 515.282.1984; Fax: 515.282.1879; Email - ©2004 Learfield...

...ba href=/schizophrenia/a/b."There is no reason at all why I should not be able to represent myself in this trial," he said.

"If I had a mental disorder, then Rosa Parks had a mental disorder, because she didn't get up off that seat."Muhammad stood throughout the two-hour hearing and spoke frequently, often sparring with his attorneys.

At one point, he asked the judge for permission to sit with the prosecutors because they agreed that he is competent.

Ryan ignored his request.In agreeing that Muhammad could act as his own attorney, Ryan stressed that Muhammad was making a bad decision because he has no legal training and little legal experience.Muhammad's attorneys said afterward that the judge had refused to hold a full hearing with witnesses."We feel we didn't get a chance to present and document evidence of a serious mental illness," said defense attorney Paul DeWolfe.

"He is very ill; he is mentally ill."The judge appointed DeWolfe and another lawyer as standby attorneys, giving them an advisory role so the defendant can ask them law questions and get help with legal filings.Muhammad briefly represented himself during his trial in Virginia, delivering an opening statement and cross-examining at least one witness.

He eventually allowed his attorneys to retake control of the case.

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"There is no reason at all why I should not be able to represent myself in this trial," Muhammad said at a hearing Wednesday.

"If I had a mental disorder, then Rosa Parks had a mental disorder, because she didn't get up off that seat." Muhammad, 45, and Lee Boyd Malvo, 21, are accused of killing 10 people and wounding three during the October 2002 spree.

He was convicted in 2003 of murder in Virginia and sentenced to death.

During that trial, he briefly fired his lawyers before allowing them to return and finish the case.

Muhammad often rambled as he spoke during Wednesday's two-hour hearing, railing against his lawyers for allegedly ignoring his requests for court records and for refusing to tell the judge that he wanted to represent himself.

He eventually wrote a handwritten letter to Ryan, dated March 11, asking for permission to fire his lawyers.

He also vehemently denied the mental health review done Monday by Yale University psychiatrist Dorothy Lewis that found he is delusional and paranoid, and diagnosed him with "schizo-affective ba href=/schizophrenia/a/b." Muhammad's lawyers used the report to ask Ryan to declare Muhammad too incompetent to take over his case.

That put Muhammad in the odd position of agreeing with prosecutors as they argued that the competency claim was just a way to dismiss Muhammad's attempts to remove his lawyers.

He nodded his head as Assistant State's Attorney Vivek Chopra asked Ryan to declare him competent, and even once asked if he could ...