What is the test for determining whether a defendant is mentally competent to stand trial?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Kendall, F060907 (Cal. App. 2012):

Appellant argues that that judgment must be reversed because the trial court violated his due process rights by failing to expressly determine whether or not there was substantial evidence of mental incompetency. Appellant also argues that the trial court abused its discretion because the record contains substantial evidence of incompetency. We are not convinced. As will be explained, the trial court's failure to act on defense counsel's statement concerning appellant's mental competence "was in effect a denial." (People v. Sundberg (1981) 124 Cal.App.3d 944, 957 (Sundberg).) The record does not contain substantial evidence of mental incompetency. The trial court did not violate

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appellant's due process rights or abuse its discretion when it failed to order a competency hearing.

"'Both the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and state law prohibit the state from trying or convicting a criminal defendant while he or she is mentally competent. [Citations.]'" (People v. Lewis (2008) 43 Cal.4th 415, 524.) "Both federal due process and state law require a trial judge to suspend trial proceedings and conduct a competency hearing whenever the court is presented with substantial evidence of incompetence, that is, evidence that raises a reasonable or bona fide doubt concerning the defendant's competence to stand trial." (People v. Rogers (2006) 39 Cal.4th 826, 847.) When evidence casting doubt on the defendant's competency is less than substantial, it is within the discretion of the trial judge whether to order a competency hearing. (People v. Welch (1999) 20 Cal.4th 701, 742 (Welch).)

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