Citation

Williams JB. J. Am. Acad. Psychiatry Law 2023; 51(4): 558-565.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, Publisher American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law)

DOI

10.29158/JAAPL.230093-23

PMID

38065620

Abstract

Defendants who are facing criminal charges in the United States have a constitutional right to be present at trial. This right can be voluntarily waived; for such a waiver to be valid, the defendant must be competent to waive the right to be present at trial. There have been several cases where a defendant is absent from trial because of a suicide attempt, and in these cases the courts must determine whether it is necessary to pause the criminal trial to allow for a competence hearing to take place. The U.S. Supreme Court offered guidance on this matter in its ruling in Drope v. Missouri; however, the Court did not clearly define the threshold for requiring a competence hearing when defendants attempt suicide during trial. Subsequent judicial rulings have provided insights into how courts might proceed when a criminal defendant is absent from trial following a suicide attempt. This topic has relevance to forensic psychiatry, as forensic psychiatrists may be called upon to participate in evaluations of adjudicative competence in these scenarios.

Language: en

Keywords

suicide; absence from court; adjudicative competence; competency to stand trial; defendants' rights; right to be present at trial