Snuka, 73, was ordered by Lehigh County Common Pleas Judge Kelly Banach to return in December for re-evaluation of his competency, Robert Kirwan II, the ex-wrestler's lawyer, said.
Kirwan could not comment on the ruling because of a gag order from Banach. The Lehigh County District Attorney’s office said it could not comment for the same reason.
Snuka was charged in September with third-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter in the 1983 beating death of his girlfriend, Nancy Argentino, 23, in a motel near Allentown.
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The case was revived after a 2013 investigation by the Morning Call newspaper in Allentown on the 30th anniversary of Argentino’s death. An autopsy report unearthed by the newspaper suggested that the death was a homicide, not an accident.
Snuka, a native of the Pacific island nation of Fiji, was a World Wrestling Federation star in the 1980s along with wrestlers Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper and Andre the Giant. His signature move was climbing to the top rope and diving onto an opponent's chest.
During a competency hearing, Frank Dattilio, a Harvard University psychologist, testified that he had examined Snuka over a period of months and believed he suffered from severe dementia.
Dattilio said he believed Snuka was not competent to help his lawyer with his defence and a trial would worsen his mental state.
Prosecutors showed recent videos that appeared to show that Snuka was aware and competent and still able to compete in the ring. A prosecution psychiatrist, John O’Brien, said he believed the former wrestler was faking dementia.
The Morning Call reported that Banach denied a prosecution motion on Wednesday to have Snuka involuntarily committed to a mental facility for 60 days. She granted Snuka permission to leave the state to live with his son in Florida.
(Editing by Ian Simpson and Leslie Adler)
