Orange Park man accused of instructing September 11th memorial event bombing may be competent to stand trial

He had been found incompetent to stand trial three times, but Joshua Goldberg may now be ready to face the federal terror-related charge he’s accused of.

The Orange Park man was indicted in September 2015. Court documents claim Goldberg sent information on how to make a bomb to a person he believed was going to plant the bomb at a September 11th memorial event in Kansas City, Missouri. Goldberg's instructions even included how to inflict the most damage with the device- like dipping shrapnel in rat poison- according to the indictment. The person speaking with Goldberg was actually a confidential informant.

Prosecutors say Goldberg admitted to giving the instructions, but he believed the person he was speaking with wasn’t going to follow through. The indictment says Goldberg planned to tell law enforcement if the device was actually planted, making himself a hero.

Goldberg was first ruled incompetent to stand trial in December 2015, then again in June and December 2016. He has been undergoing treatment at Federal Medical Center in Butner, NC for autism spectrum disorder and major depressive disorder. During a status hearing Wednesday, a judge mentioned that a competency report had been received in which doctors who have been treating Goldberg say he is now competent to stand trial.

A competency hearing must still be held where a judge will make a formal determination. Goldberg’s attorney, Paul Shorstein, tells WOKV News that he is unsure at this time whether he will dispute the doctor’s report.

“I really can’t say one way or another. I mean, I’ve read the report. I need to talk to him, talk to his family,” Shorstein says.

He plans to know more by the competency hearing.

The US Attorney’s Office confirms another status conference has been set for April 7th, at which time they will set a date for the competency hearing.