History Lesson: Psychology and COMPETENCE TO STAND TRIAL
For every defendant found not guilty by reason of insanity, at least a
hundred defendants are found incompetent to stand trial and are sent to institutions
for the criminally insane until they are able to be tried (Bacon,
1969). Being incompetent to stand trial augurs a long incarceration: the
average confinement of people committed as incompetent was sixty-one
months, and the average for those civilly committed (in Massachusetts at
the time of the study) was fourteen months (McGarry and Bendt, 1969). It is
not uncommon for people alleged to be incompetent to stand trial to be remanded
to institutions for the criminally insane for decades, and simply
forgotten. At one such institution, three people among those who were now
fully able to stand trial but who had been "overlooked" had been incarcerated
for forty-two, thirty-nine, and seventeen years respectively-this, before
any determination of their guilt had been made! (McGarry and Bendt,
1969).
What does "incompetent to stand trial" mean? Most statutory definitions
are similar to New York's, which defines an "incompetent person" as one
"who as a result of mental disease or defect lacks capacity to understand the
proceedings against him or to assist in his own defense."* The intent of the
a trial in absentia. While the defendant may be physically present,
when he is judged incompetent to stand trial, he is believed to be psychologically
absent, and the trial is delayed until he can participate in his own defense.
Until recently, there were no limits on how long people could be committed
until judged competent to stand trial. What if they would never be competent
to stand trial? Such a dilemma arose tragically in Jackson v.
Indiana. *
Theon Jackson was a mentally defective deaf-mute. He could not read, write,
or otherwise communicate except through limited sign language. In May, 1968, at
the age of twenty-seven, Jackson was charged with separate robberies of two
women, both of which robberies were alleged to have occurred in the previous
July. The first robbery involved a purse and its contents; the total value was four
dollars. The second concerned five dollars in cash. Jackson entered a plea of not
guilty through his attorney.
Had he been convicted, Jackson would likely have received a sentence of sixty
days. But he could not be tried because, in accord with Indiana law, Jackson was
examined by two psychiatrists who found that he lacked the intellectual and communicative
skills to participate in his own defense, and that the prognosis for acquiring
them was dim indeed. Moreover, Jackson's interpreter testified that
Indiana had no facilities that could help someone as badly off as Jackson to learn
minimal communication skills. The trial court, therefore, found that Jackson
"lacked comprehension sufficient to make his defense," and ordered him committed
until the Indiana Department of Mental Health certified that the "defendant
is sane."
Continue to part 2.
hundred defendants are found incompetent to stand trial and are sent to institutions
for the criminally insane until they are able to be tried (Bacon,
1969). Being incompetent to stand trial augurs a long incarceration: the
average confinement of people committed as incompetent was sixty-one
months, and the average for those civilly committed (in Massachusetts at
the time of the study) was fourteen months (McGarry and Bendt, 1969). It is
not uncommon for people alleged to be incompetent to stand trial to be remanded
to institutions for the criminally insane for decades, and simply
forgotten. At one such institution, three people among those who were now
fully able to stand trial but who had been "overlooked" had been incarcerated
for forty-two, thirty-nine, and seventeen years respectively-this, before
any determination of their guilt had been made! (McGarry and Bendt,
1969).
What does "incompetent to stand trial" mean? Most statutory definitions
are similar to New York's, which defines an "incompetent person" as one
"who as a result of mental disease or defect lacks capacity to understand the
proceedings against him or to assist in his own defense."* The intent of the
- New York Criminal Code S730.10(1).
a trial in absentia. While the defendant may be physically present,
when he is judged incompetent to stand trial, he is believed to be psychologically
absent, and the trial is delayed until he can participate in his own defense.
Until recently, there were no limits on how long people could be committed
until judged competent to stand trial. What if they would never be competent
to stand trial? Such a dilemma arose tragically in Jackson v.
Indiana. *
Theon Jackson was a mentally defective deaf-mute. He could not read, write,
or otherwise communicate except through limited sign language. In May, 1968, at
the age of twenty-seven, Jackson was charged with separate robberies of two
women, both of which robberies were alleged to have occurred in the previous
July. The first robbery involved a purse and its contents; the total value was four
dollars. The second concerned five dollars in cash. Jackson entered a plea of not
guilty through his attorney.
Had he been convicted, Jackson would likely have received a sentence of sixty
days. But he could not be tried because, in accord with Indiana law, Jackson was
examined by two psychiatrists who found that he lacked the intellectual and communicative
skills to participate in his own defense, and that the prognosis for acquiring
them was dim indeed. Moreover, Jackson's interpreter testified that
Indiana had no facilities that could help someone as badly off as Jackson to learn
minimal communication skills. The trial court, therefore, found that Jackson
"lacked comprehension sufficient to make his defense," and ordered him committed
until the Indiana Department of Mental Health certified that the "defendant
is sane."
Continue to part 2.