Court records show Brandt’s attorneys entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity in Montgomery County, where he faces similar allegations of raping his children. Gounaris said a competency report would be completed in about five weeks. Lindeman said those findings could determine the course of action in Miami County.
“Ohio Revised Code provides an evaluation that … is supposed to evaluate the mental status of an individual at the time of the alleged offense but also whether or not that individual is able to aid in their defense,” Gounaris said. “That’s where both competency and sanity come into play.”
Gounaris would not elaborate on any specific concerns he has about Brandt’s competency.
Brandt adopted three children from Texas and was in the process of adopting a fourth when law enforcement officials said an investigation revealed that Brandt had raped three boys under age 13 in his care and prostituted one son out to Beavercreek’s Jason Zwick and Dayton’s Patrick Rieder.
Along with the 31 counts of felony rape in Miami County, Brandt faces seven similar felonies in Montgomery County. Zwick faces three counts of rape in Miami County while Rieder faces four counts of rape in Montgomery County.
Gounaris said the suppression issues to be contested dealt with both statements made by Brandt before official charges were filed and his Sixth Amendment rights and protections including the right to an attorney. In his motion to suppress, Gounaris wrote that after Brandt was arrested Feb. 24 and requested counsel Feb. 27 that his client was unlawfully interrogated by law enforcement.
Brandt’s trial in Montgomery County is scheduled for mid-December but could be changed depending on the competency report. There is no estimate for the start of Brandt’s trial in Miami County. If he was convicted of the most serious alleged crimes, Brandt would face life in prison without parole.
Meanwhile, Miami Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Gee ruled against Zwick’s motion to suppress items found at Zwick’s residence after two search warrants granted in Greene County were executed. Gee found the testimony from then-Det. Chris Unroe of the Beavercreek police to be credible and justified the search warrants.
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