Richard Tillman makes 1st court appearance after San Jose post office fire; competency in question

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- A Santa Clara County judge has put criminal proceedings on hold for Richard Tillman as his competency is looked into.

This comes after his first court appearance, following a Sunday morning fire that Tillman allegedly caused at a San Jose post office.

His social media videos were all over the internet, but Wednesday we got to see Richard Tillman in person - waving and smiling towards a packed courtroom.

The brother of former NFL player and Army Ranger Pat Tillman is now facing felony arson charges after police say he purposefully crashed his car into the building and lit it on fire.

Tillman had several outbursts in court, including saying his public defender was incompetent.

Despite the request of no bail allowed by prosecutors, Tillman is being held on a $135,000 bail while his criminal proceedings are suspended as his mental health is assessed.

"Everything that he has said, including the rest of our investigation, goes into our determination as to which charges are appropriate as well as our belief that the defendant, not only needs to be held accountable for his actions, but also poses a risk to public safety," Santa Clara Co. Asst. District Attorney Angela Bernhard said.

Early Sunday morning, court documents say Tillman used insta-logs covered in lighter fluid in his car to set the post office on fire.

The entire incident was allegedly caught on Tillman's YouTube live stream, including him spray painting "Viva La Me" on the building.

RELATED: Pat Tillman's brother battling mental health issues before arrest, family says

This all came before the responding officer ended the stream and arrested Tillman.

Tillman's brother, Kevin, declined to comment after court.

But told us in a statement Monday, "Unfortunately, securing the proper care and support for him has proven incredibly difficult - or rather, impossible. As a result, none of this is as shocking as it should be."

Legal Analyst Steven Clark says Tillman's defense rests on his mental health.

"He will likely be eligible for mental health diversion, which is a rigorous, two-year program," Clark said. But if he successfully completes this program, these charges could be dismissed."

A look at his social media appears to tell us more.

MORE: Brother of late NFL star Pat Tillman arrested after crashing into San Jose post office, causing fire

ABC7 News interviewed Tillman in 2015 and he looks a lot different now in pictures on his Facebook and YouTube page.

Tillman refers to himself as Yeshua HaMashiach, a Hebrew phrase that translates to Jesus the Messiah, the "Son of the Most High God."

Along with his brief career in Hollywood, Tillman gained nationwide attention from his eulogy at his brother's funeral in San Jose after Pat was killed by friendly fire serving in Afghanistan as an Army Ranger in 2004.

His YouTube page, which has since been deleted, illustrates a mission to bring down the government.

In his latest video on July 15, he said he was going to take down the whole system, the United States and the world government.

MORE: Pat Tillman's brother launches children's book series

On Monday, Tillman said he was willing to do a jailhouse interview with our station.

But later that afternoon, the public defenders office stepped in and denied the request on behalf of their client - citing his mental health.

"His team wants to be able to triage this case, understand his mental health issues and understand the best way to move forward," Clark said. "Certainly, it wouldn't work in Mr. Tillman's favor to have statements to the media coming forward."

Clark says what remains to be seen is whether or not Tillman will be charged in federal court following the post office fire.

For now, Tillman will be back on August 15 when the court assigns doctors to assess his competency.