COLUMBUS — The state's schedule for condemned killer Jay D. Scott shows he will die from a lethal injection Tuesday night.

        But even as Lucasville Prison guards get ready to perform the grim procedure, no one can guarantee the execution will take place. Nearly 18 years after Mr. Scott shot Vinnie Prince, an elderly delicatessen owner in Cleveland, a final question about his sanity could force a court-ordered delay.

        “We're not disputing he has schizophrenia,” said Chris Frey, an assistant Cuyahoga County prosecutor. “Our dispute is that it doesn't rise to a level that blocks the execution.”

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Scott     • Lawyers for condemned killer Jay D. Scott will argue he's mentally unfit for execution during a 2 p.m. court hearing Monday in Cuyahoga County.     • Mr. Scott is scheduled to die by lethal injection Tuesday at 9.m. in the Lucasville Prison death chamber.

        On Monday, Mr. Scott's attorneys will tell a Cuyahoga County court their client's mental state has crumbled to such a low point that killing him would be inhumane. That raises doubts the state can carry out its sentence on time, even if Judge David Matia throws out the appeal.

        Mr. Scott, 51, is on track to become the first death row inmate executed against his will since the death penalty was reinstated in 1981. Aside from the unusual case of Wilford Berry — who volunteered to die in 1999 — the state's judicial system hasn't dealt with a typical death penalty case at its crucial ending stage.

        So, will Mr. Scott die Tuesday night?

        “I don't know,” Mr. Frey said. “This is so novel. I really couldn't tell you.”

        Timothy F. Sweeney, one of Mr. Scott's attorneys, is just as anxious. He does not know what will happen if Judge Matia dismisses the case or finds Mr. Scott competent after only a few hours of argument.

        “I certainly don't concede that we won't have any other options to pursue” Mr. Sweeney said. “We are up against a wall here.”

        The state of Mr. Scott's mind is the crux of the current dilemma.

        A prison doctor diagnosed Mr. Scott in December as suffering from chronic undifferentiated schizophrenia. Court documents show he's suffered several episodes that psychotropic drugs could not prevent.

        Ohio law says a person is mentally fit to be executed if he understands he is going to be put to death because he murdered someone.

        State officials, including Gov. Bob Taft, believe Mr. Scott easily meets that test. Ohio Parole Board member Jay Denton described Mr. Scott as “lucid, alert, attentive,” and “willing to respond to questions,” during a March 22 interview.

        The governor relied on that opinion when he denied clemency for Mr. Scott earlier this week.

        “There is no evidence that his condition even approaches the high standard established under state and federal law,” Mr. Taft said in a written statement.

        With new questions surrounding the death penalty and the execution of mentally retarded and disabled inmates, Mr. Sweeney hopes the court will take some time to determine whether Mr. Scott's death is an appropriate punishment.

        “He's got a severe brain disorder,” Mr. Sweeney said. “We think this is precisely the situation in which a stay (of execution) is required.”

        If Judge Matia agrees, Mr. Sweeney thinks the Ohio Supreme Court will issue a stay to give the court enough time to weigh arguments for and against execution.

        State law gives courts up to 60 days to determine mental fitness.

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