AUBURN – A man who confessed to starting three fires downtown is mentally retarded, psychiatrists testified in court on Friday.

Tracy John Smith, 30, is charged with three counts of arson for the fires in October. His defense attorney, James Howaniec, wants to throw out a confession Smith made to Lewiston Detective Marc Robitaille about starting the fires.

In Androscoggin County Superior Court, Howaniec said Smith is mentally retarded and has the understanding of a small child.

“Tracy is basically a 5-year-old,” he said. “The evidence is clear that he didn’t have the competence to make voluntary statements.”

Two mental health experts, Dr. James Jacob and Dr. Diane Schetky of Rockport, backed Howaniec’s claim, saying Smith’s mental abilities made him incompetent to understand the detective’s questions.

Smith is charged with starting three fires between Oct. 23 and Oct. 29. According to Robitaille, Smith said he didn’t have any medical or mental conditions, except for being cross-eyed. “I was able to understand him clearly,” Robitaille testified. “And he was able to understand me clearly.”

But Jacobs said he tested Smith’s vocabulary and problem-solving skills and determined he has an IQ of 55 or lower. “He appeared to want to please me,” Jacobs said. “I certainly had a feeling that I could ask him anything, and he would say that he did it.”