Suspect in Attempted Bank Robbery Is Resident of Brain Injury Facility

Update 2 p.m. May 9: Frank Keane, manager at the Stone Mountain facility, contacted Patch today and made this statement:

"The conservator for Stephen Coulter has given permission to contact you regarding the inaccurate reporting of his residence. Mr. Coulter does not reside at Stone Mountain on Highland Valley Road. He has never been a resident at Stone Mountain."

Patch has requested further clarification from Keane. Coulter told us in an interview he requested several months ago that he had lived at Stone Mountain for years. Patch sought to verify Coulter's information from that interview with Hidden Valley but was told there was no comment. No other sources were available for verification on the record at the time, so Coulter's comment was taken at face value. Hidden Valley operates several facilities in Ramona. Coulter had requested to talk to Patch after reading about the proposed expansion of the Stone Mountain facility, which he favored. The interview with Coulter will be published on Patch in a few days.

Original story:

A man accused of trying to rob the Wells Fargo bank branch inside Stater Bros. in Ramona on May 3 told investigators he had been "thinking about robbing a bank or killing someone for years," according to the federal complaint.

Stephen Michael Coulter, 52, remains under federal detention, following a hearing Tuesday morning in the US District Court in San Diego. His next court appearance is a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 17.

According to the FBI complaint, Coulter handed a to the teller, which read "bank robbery" and something to the effect of placing $2,000 on the counter. The teller told another staff person a code word, and that person pushed the alert button. Coulter told the teller he did not have a weapon, then said, "I think I better leave now," according to the complaint. He then walked out of the store after the teller had placed money on the counter. He got into a vehicle that was stopped by Sheriff's deputies.

Coulter is a resident of Stone Mountain, a Ramona facility for people with acquired brain injury, according to an interview he requested with Patch several months ago. The facility is operated by Hidden Valley Ranch Rehabilitation Services on Highland Valley Road. His medical condition was raised at Tuesday's hearing, Assistant US Attorney A. Dale Blankenship told Patch. Coulter's sister and a representative from Hidden Valley Ranch spoke on his behalf in Magistrate Judge David H. Bartick's courtroom.

Neither of the federal public defenders was available to talk to Patch within the time constraints of this report to clarify how Coulter's medical issues might be addressed in the legal proceedings.

Blankenship told Patch, "Regarding issues of mental competency or responsibility, I need to withhold comment pending the investigation being completed and the completion of criminal proceedings."

Coulter made no threats and wasn’t armed in the attempted bank robbery, sheriff’s Sgt. Greg Rylaarsdam reported last week.

The defendant is charged with attempted bank robbery under 18 US Code Section 2113 (a). The US Marshals Service will determine in which facility he will be detained pending the outcome of his case.

The manager of Stone Mountain had no comment for Patch when contacted Monday. The owner of Hidden Valley Ranch was overseas, Patch was told.