Mental Competency Proceedings in Federal Criminal Cases

Abstract

W HENEVER a person accused of crime is found to be mentally ill, two separate legal questions may be raised. first rela,tes to the accused's mental capacity to stand trial, receive sentence, and undergo second question relates to whether or not the accused is to be considered responsible for his acts. This presentation is concerned solely witlh the first of these questions, namely, the determination of mental competency to stand tria] in Federal criminal cases. Under Anglo-American common law, mental disorder, amounting to insanity on the part of the accused, is a bar to further proceedings in a criminal case. application of the comnmon la,w rule on this issue in the Federal district courts is nicely spelled out in the Youtsey case (1), which states, It is fundamental that an insane person cannot plead to an arraignment, be subjected to a trial, or, after trial receive judgment, or after judgment, undergo punishment. In the Youtsey case the court also appears to have recognized that the attention of a court should be directed to the mental capacity of an accused to understand the proceedings against him, and rationally advise with his counsel as to his disposition of the mentally incompetent accused was considered in the Forthofer case (2) which quotes, with approval from Smoot's of Insanity, as follows: The general practice is that, where the defendant is found to be insane, the trial is stopped pending the prisoner's recovery, and, until he does recover, the prisoner may be remanded to an asylum or other proper form of restraint. In this case the court also pointed out that At common law a person could not be tried while he was insane, because his helpless condition rendered him incapable of making a proper defense. present legislation providing for the care and custody of insane persons charged with, or convicted of, offenses against the United States, was enafeted in 1949, Public Law 285 (18 U.S.C. 4244 through 4248) (3). Prior to the enactDr. Smith is assistant medical director, Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. Mr. Strawberry is clinical psychologist at the National Training School for Boys, Washington, D.C. article is based on a paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association held in Philadelphia, Pa., April 30, 1959. study was proposed by Dr. Harold M. Janney, medical director, Bureau of Prisons. Fed, eral Bureau of Investigation supplied data for the followup study.