Golden Gate murder suspect will undergo psychiatric exam

Bill Gang

Tuesday, Nov. 30, 1999 | 10:55 a.m.

Larry D. Taylor, who is charged with gunning down his ex-girlfriend in a crowded downtown casino, will face a psychiatrist before he faces a jury, a judge has ruled.

"At this point he's not competent to proceed," Deputy Public Defender Will Ewing argued before Justice of the Peace Doug Smith on Monday. Ewing asked that a preliminary hearing scheduled for the 37-year-old defendant be postponed.

A Dec. 10 court date has been set to decide the future of the case.

If Taylor is found to be mentally incompetent, he will be sent to the state's mental facility at Lake's Crossing near Sparks for treatment.

While mental impairment can delay a trial, it cannot result in an acquittal because there is no "insanity defense" allowed under Nevada law. A killer, however, can be determined to be guilty but mentally insane and receive psychiatric treatment in one of the state prisons.

Prosecutors say Taylor checked into the Golden Gate -- where his ex-girlfriend, Gloria Cohns, worked as a blackjack dealer -- on Nov. 9.

The next day, the charges say, Taylor walked into the casino with a pistol and began shooting at Cohns as she stood behind her table in the crowded casino.

As she fled through the casino and into a women's restroom, more shots were fired, witnesses told police. A moment later, the woman emerged from the restroom and collapsed.

Taylor surrendered immediately after placing a semiautomatic pistol on a craps table in the club at Fremont and Main streets, police said. He was tackled by hotel security guards and held for Metro Police.

Witnesses said that before his apprehension, Taylor had pointed the pistol at his own head but did not pull the trigger.

Taylor and Cohns met when they both worked for Official Security Co. and they eventually lived together, along with her three children.

But his obsession with her led to their breakup two years ago, police said.

Prosecutors have reserved the right to seek the death penalty, although no final decision will be made until the case finds its way to District Court.