Arkansas TV Anchor Slaying Suspect To Appear In Court

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - The man accused of killing an Arkansas television anchorwoman from South Carolina will appear in court and could discuss why he refused to take part in a mental competency exam.

Curtis Lavelle Vance will appear before Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chris Piazza at 9 a.m. Tuesday. The hearing was scheduled to discuss the exam, but Vance declined to take part in it. However, a psychiatrist from the Arkansas State Hospital says Vance refused the test in a “rational” way.

Vance, 28, is accused in the October beating death of Anne Pressly, a morning anchorwoman for Little Rock television station KATV from Greenville, S.C. Vance has pleaded not guilty to capital murder and other charges and faces a Sept. 9 trial. Prosecutors have yet to say whether they’ll seek the death penalty.