( CNN ) -- An attorney for a man charged in the abduction of University of Virginia student Hannah Graham and assault of a different woman indicated Friday that he wants his client to undergo a sanity evaluation . That development came as Jesse Matthew was arraigned Friday in the latter case in which he 's accused of sexually assaulting a woman in Fairfax , Virginia , in 2005 . Matthew separately is charged with abducting Graham , the 18-year-old sophomore whose body was found on an abandoned Virginia farm October 18 , more than a month after she was last seen in Charlottesville . In Friday 's arraignment in the Fairfax case , defense attorney James Camblos tried to introduce a motion seeking an evaluation for his client . A judge cut Camblos short , saying that motion could be filed and considered later once a jurist was permanently assigned to the case . Fairfax County prosecutor Ray Morrogh told reporters Friday that Camblos ' motion sought a sanity evaluation that would help determine Matthew 's competency to stand trial . Matthew made a virtual appearance at the Fairfax hearing via video from jail in Charlottesville , where he 's being held in connection with the Graham case . In Friday 's hearing , he was arraigned on three charges in the 2005 case : abduction , sexual assault and attempted capital murder . Analysts say he may be tried first in Fairfax , because authorities there have had more time to build their case , and they have both DNA evidence as well as a potential eyewitness . Woman was dragged , sexually assaulted . In the Fairfax case , authorities say that on September 24 , 2005 , a young woman returning from a grocery store was grabbed from behind by an assailant and sexually assaulted . `` We saw her purse on the front sidewalk , '' said neighbor Stacey Simkins . `` He had already dragged her behind our units to the dark pool area . '' Simkins did not see the suspect 's face , but she immediately called police . `` The offender was scared away by a passer-by , '' the FBI said in a statement , `` but the victim got a good look at him . '' The victim helped authorities draw up a composite sketch , and now she could potentially be called as a witness at trial . `` I 'd rather not say where she is , but she is cooperative , '' Morrogh , the prosecutor , said last week . Evidence may be challenged . In addition to the victim 's potential testimony , the FBI also said it has DNA evidence in the case . But DNA evidence can be challenged in court , said HLN legal analyst and defense attorney Joey Jackson , as can the testimony of the victim . `` When someone is undergoing a trauma , as in this case the victim was , you have to wonder whether that traumatic experience could make what she saw reliable , '' Jackson said . `` On the other hand , the prosecution will argue that it 's emblazoned in her memory . '' Still , testimony and forensics may not be the only evidence in the Fairfax case . Now that investigators have the name of a possible suspect , Jackson said , they are likely chasing dozens of new threads , searching for evidence . For example , they would be looking for cell phone records , texts , surveillance video or toll booth receipts that might link Matthew to the crime scene , or any friends or relatives or business associates that might place him in Fairfax . Matthew 's attorney to represent him in both cases . Camblos , Matthew 's attorney in Charlottesville , declined to comment on the charges or the evidence against his client in either city . The Fairfax County judge granted Matthew 's request to have Camblos represent him in the 2005 case , though the judge also appointed a public defender . In Charlottesville , prosecutors on October 24 said that they are still weighing which additional charges they will file in the Graham case . The case could be more difficult to make , according to defense attorney Scott Goodman , since there may be no witnesses who could testify . It is also unclear what forensic evidence may exist in the case , aside from a surveillance video from the night of Graham 's disappearance -- on September 13 -- that shows Matthew , 32 , apparently following her in Charlottesville 's Downtown Mall area . `` In Charlottesville , the case is much more complicated than Fairfax , because the Charlottesville case relies almost wholly on circumstantial evidence , '' Goodman said . Matthew was taken into custody September 24 while camping on a beach in Galveston , Texas , some 1,300 miles from Charlottesville . He is the only person detained in connection with Graham 's disappearance , and was charged with abduction with the intent to defile . CNN 's Paul Courson contributed to this report .
NEW : Request for evaluation comes in separate sex assault case from 2005 . Jesse Matthew was last person seen with University of Virginia student Hannah Graham . Authorities : DNA evidence links him to 2005 sex assault .