HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) A public defender representing a 73-year-old man accused of setting fire to his room at a Connecticut nursing home has requested that her client undergo a competency evaluation.

The Hartford Courant reports attorney Claudia Jones told Harford Superior Court Judge Carl Taylor on Thursday that she was having difficulty communicating with her client, Rodrick Peters.

Peters has been charged with first-degree arson in connection with the June 18 blaze at Touchpoints in Bloomfield. Authorities say Peters used two rolls of toilet paper to set fire to a wood cabinet in his room at the nursing home.

Jones said Peters is showing signs of dementia and doesn't appear to understand what is going on.