Dr. Harry Krop, was also one of the court-appointed mental health experts who evaluated Ponticelli in preparation for the August 2, 1988, competency hearing. At the competency hearing, Krop testified that he believed Ponticelli was competent. More than twelve years later, at the evidentiary hearing, Krop testified that this evaluation enabled him to testify that both statutory mental health mitigators applied in Ponticelli's case. Krop testified that the report he issued following this first evaluation indicated that Ponticelli was voluntarily intoxicated at the time of the homicides, but Krop never spoke with defense counsel about this.
In preparation for the evidentiary hearing, Dr. Krop evaluated Ponticelli a second time. He then testified at the evidentiary hearing that both statutory mental health mitigators applied in Ponticelli's case. Ponticelli's two otherand that Ponticelli exhibited signs of severe cocaine addiction at the time of the crimes.
In rebuttal, the State presented a mental health expert, Dr. Wayne Conger, at the evidentiary hearing. Conger evaluated Ponticelli in July 2000 and testified that while he could not deny the fact that Ponticelli's brain may have been damaged by his cocaine use, he did not believe the damage was extensive enough to find incompetence or insanity. Conger also testified that Ponticelli was a normal functioning individual, both intellectually and cognitively. The facts surrounding the crimes demonstrated significant, goal-oriented behavior that was inconsistent with significant cognitive dysfunction and with the allegation that Ponticelli's cocaine use prevented him from reasoning effectively. Conger conducted many of the same tests as Crown and testified that the differences