Millbrae Murder Suspect to Undergo Further Psychiatric Evaluation

Teyseer Zaid Najdawi, 28, will again face psychiatric evaluation after he requested to represent himself in court despite concerns over his mental health.

Najdawi is accused of shooting his friend multiple times in the head in 2008 as they were driving home from a night of drinking in San Francisco, according to San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.

He fled to Northern California, where authorities later apprehended him. After attacking his cellmate for no apparent reason in county jail, court-appointed doctors deemed him not competent to stand trial.

Instead of being tried, he was committed to the California Department of Mental Health in 2009 and placed at Napa State Hospital.

In front of Judge Joseph Scott on Friday, Najdawi stated his desire to represent himself and included the fact that he is diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic. Scott denied his request and sent the case to San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Lisa Novak, who ordered a mental exam. The results are due by Oct. 7.

He remains in custody on no bail status. His motive for shooting his friend is unclear, according to the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.