Suspect in Portsmouth stabbing to have second exam

PORTSMOUTH

A judge on Tuesday ordered a second psychological evaluation of Bruce Williams, who is charged with murder in the death of a 64-year-old woman at Effingham Plaza, a public housing complex for senior citizens and disabled individuals.

Linda Gay Carroll was found stabbed to death in her bedroom Feb. 25. Williams, 52, also lived in the senior complex near the Norfolk Naval Shipyard.

Williams was arrested in April, and police say he also is a suspect in the March 6 stabbing death of Gloria M. Johnson, who was found dead in the roadway of Wilcox Avenue. Johnson and Carroll knew each other and were friends with the same people, according to police.

A psychiatrist who conducted the first evaluation concluded that Williams was insane at the time of the offense. Andrew Kolp, the prosecutor, asked the judge for a second evaluation.

More than 20 years ago, Williams was convicted of murder in the strangling death of a 20-year-old Virginia Beach woman, who was choked with a belt and left in a car trunk in Norfolk. Williams was sentenced to 14 years in prison but released in half that time. Online court records show he was arrested in 1998 and again in 2004 on probation violations in Norfolk.

The new case prompted the Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing Authority to ask federal officials for permission to change its policy on allowing ex-convicts to live in the city's public housing neighborhoods.

Kathy Warren, deputy executive director of the housing authority, said Tuesday that the authority will rewrite its policy to ban residents with a history of violent crimes such as murder.

Janie Bryant, (757) 446-2453, janie.bryant@pilotonline.com