A St. Clair County teenager accused of soliciting support for a terrorist act was found not guilty by reason of mental defect in court this morning.

Lawyers for Peyton Jack Pruitt, 19, of Wattsville, say he will undergo another mental evaluation with Tuscaloosa's Taylor Hardin Secure Mental Facility before a final decision is made on his disposition.

Pruitt was arrested Nov. 13, 2015, charged with soliciting support for a terrorist act.

At a December hearing, witnesses described Pruitt as a "child" - a teenager with an IQ in the 50s who cannot tie his own shoes, soils his clothes, has little verbal skills and lacks the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy.

Yet a St. Clair County investigator then testified that the FBI determined Pruitt used the Internet to communicate with what he believed were representatives of the Islamic State and the Pakistani Taliban, and that he told an FBI agent that he provided links to encrypted information on car bombs, pressure cooker bombs and suggested high value targets for acts of terrorism.

A May mental evaluation found Pruitt has a mental defect and is "not a danger to himself or the community."

James Gallini, Pruitt's attorney, said he is pleased with the verdict. If found guilty, Pruitt could have faced 10 years in prison.

"Of course, his evaluation earlier this year showed he has a mental defect, so we're appreciative to the district attorney for not challenging those results," Gallini said. "We agree that Peyton poses not risk to himself or the community at large, and we're confident another evaluation will show this."

In court this morning, Pruitt sat in cuffs and leg irons with close cropped hair and eyeglasses as his attorneys pleaded his case. Pruitt has been held in the St. Clair County Jail since his arrest last year.

After a moment, Gallini could be seen explaining to Pruitt what had happened.

"You've been found not guilty," he said. "That's good. I need you to stay happy. This is about over."

In a three-page statement, Pruitt's family said Peyton was arrested after he had "copied and pasted things way above his intellect and by doing so had broken the law."

"Did Peyton do wrong? Yes. Did he understand his actions? No," the statement reads. "He has been deemed completely safe and is in no danger to himself or anyone else. Peyton is harmless."

In the statement, the family asks Peyton be given "a second chance at life" after "a truly devastating ordeal."

"It is important to the family for the general public to please try and understand that Peyton is a disabled boy who went through a time of confusion and is of no risk to public safety," it reads. "We apologize for what has happened to the concerned citizens of Alabama and St. Clair County."

Tony Pruitt, Peyton's father, thanked the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office for keeping his son "safe and secure" during his time in jail, and the county board of education for working with him while incarcerated.

"What a relief of burden it is when you see the care and attention (the sheriff's office) have given a disabled person," he said. "He hasn't had special privileges but he has been reminded to brush his teeth and has had help in the areas he could not accomplish himself."

Pruitt said his family has "seen the genuine love and care the County has shown as well as Peyton's attorneys have toward the disabled."

"I'm just asking forgiveness for my boy and a better understanding of Peyton so the public can feel secure when he is released," he said.