BENTONVILLE — A man accused of killing a 6-year-old girl will undergo a second mental evaluation.
Zachary Dwayne Holly, 28, of Bentonville is charged in connection with capital murder, kidnapping and rape in connection with the abduction and killing of Jersey Bridgeman. Holly also is charged in connection with residential burglary. Holly is being held without bond in the Benton County Jail.
Prosecutors will seek the death penalty.
Holly appeared in court Wednesday morning for a mental status hearing. Holly’s defense team requested the evaluation to determine if Holly is fit to stand trial and whether he understood right from wrong at the time of the crime. The evaluation was to also include intelligence quotient testing for Holly. The evaluation was performed at the Arkansas State Hospital in Little Rock. Results of the evaluation are under seal.
Attorney Madison Aydelott III told Circuit Judge Brad Karren the defense will use its own expert to evaluate Holly. Dr. Patricia Walz of Fort Smith is set to meet with Holly on June 21, Aydelott said.
Aydelott and Van Stone, Benton County prosecutor, requested results of the second evaluation also be sealed. Karren granted the request.
Another mental status hearing is set for July 25.
Jersey’s body was found in an abandoned house next to Holly’s home Nov. 20. A medical examiner determined Jersey died from asphyxia, according to court documents.
Holly lived next door to Jersey’s family on Southwest A Street, and he and his wife would sometimes baby-sit Jersey and her younger sister, according to court documents.