PIKEVILLE, Ky. — A Pike County man went to court Friday intending to plead guilty in the child pornography case against him. Instead, his lawyer now says he plans to assert an insanity defense and is asking the court to determine if his client is competent to stand trial.

Robert Preston, 39, of Shelbiana, is charged in federal court with producing and possessing child porn and cyberstalking. He had asked the court for permission to plead guilty, saying he had worked out a plea deal with prosecutors.

But now, his attorney says it isn’t clear if Preston is in the right frame of mind to make that decision. In a motion for a competency determination, the attorney argues Preston has exhibited behavior and made statements in recent weeks that give him reason to believe he may be suffering from a mental illness or defect that would render him incompetent to stand trial.

In a separate filing, the attorney also said he plans to argue that Preston was insane when the alleged crimes were committed.

The judge has not yet ruled on whether to grant a competency hearing.