Opinion ID: 700633
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: PROCEEDING WITH THE TRIAL IN McBRIDE'S ABSENCE

Text: 36 McBride argues that her conviction should be reversed because the district court improperly proceeded with the trial in her absence. The trial commenced on September 13, 1993. McBride attended the first week of trial, in which a great deal of evidence was presented against her and her co-defendants. When court reconvened on Monday, September 20, 1993, McBride was not present. McBride's counsel, Mr. Lanigan, stated that McBride's family had called him Sunday night to tell him that McBride had checked into the emergency room of Delta Regional Medical Center in Greenville. Counsel, however, had not been able to contact her physician, Dr. Estess. The government reported that it had learned that McBride had checked into the hospital on Sunday evening after allegedly ingesting fifty antidepressant pills in an apparent suicide attempt. The government then moved that the court find McBride voluntarily absent under Fed.R.Crim.P. 43(b). 37 The court granted a recess to allow Mr. Lanigan to talk to his client and Dr. Estess. Following the recess, Mr. Lanigan stated that he had reached Dr. Estess, who had informed him that McBride would receive a routine mental evaluation on Tuesday and be released by Wednesday. Apparently, the court also talked to Dr. Estess and confirmed the report. 38 The district court found that McBride's ingestion of the fifty pills was voluntary under Fed.R.Crim.P. 43 and that she had therefore waived her right to be present at trial. The court further found that the public interest in proceeding with the trial outweighed McBride's interest in being present. In making this determination, the court considered the multi-defendant nature of the case; that witnesses had been subpoenaed from Florida and Nevada; that twenty-five witnesses had already testified; and that the jury was district-wide, with some jurors travelling over 100 miles a day. 39 However, in an abundance of caution, the court ruled that it would not hear any evidence implicating McBride for the remainder of the day and that after Monday's testimony, it would grant a continuance until Wednesday to give defense counsel time to resolve the situation. The Miami evidence, which implicated McBride, was slated for Wednesday. The district court also strongly advised counsel to visit McBride and inform her that she needed to be present at trial, that she had a right to be present, and that the evidence against her would proceed in her absence if she did not return by Wednesday. 40 When the court reconvened on Wednesday, McBride's counsel filed a motion to reconsider the court's finding that McBride was voluntarily absent. Counsel informed the court that McBride had not yet been released from the hospital because of additional complications. He stated that he understood from Dr. Estess that she would be released Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning. Counsel further stated that he had visited McBride and that she was in relatively good spirits. McBride had told him she would come to the trial if she was mentally and physically able. 41 The parties then suggested that the court contact Dr. Estess, as no one was certain as to McBride's exact condition. The court agreed and spoke to Dr. Estess. The district judge reported to counsel that Dr. Estess told him that McBride was still hospitalized and that she had a lot of vague complaints ... that he was having trouble verifying, but he needed to attempt to verify. The doctor informed the court that McBride would probably be discharged the next day, though he could not be certain. 42 The court then reconfirmed its finding that McBride's absence was voluntary. In light of the complicating factors caused by the multi-defendant trial and the uncertainty as to McBride's release, he also reconfirmed his decision to proceed with the trial in her absence. The trial proceeded and was completed on Wednesday, September 23, when the jury returned a verdict. On September 24, the court ordered that McBride be taken into custody and be transferred to the federal medical facility in Lexington, Kentucky for a full physical and mental evaluation. 43 On December 29, 1993, the court held a hearing on McBride's motion for new trial. The court made it clear that the hearing would address the issue of whether McBride's absence was voluntary. However, McBride elected not to testify at the hearing. At the hearing the government called Harold Duke, counsel for Davenport. Mr. Duke testified that he and Davenport were standing in the hallway outside the courtroom at the conclusion of the first week of the trial, discussing whether Davenport planned to stay in Oxford, where the trial was, or return to Greenville for the weekend. 4 McBride, who was also standing in the hallway, indicated that she was going to Greenville. When Davenport asked McBride if she were coming back to Oxford on Monday, McBride replied, Naw, I'm not coming back. Mr. Duke testified that at the time he understood her remark to be humorous. After hearing this evidence, the district court denied McBride's motion for a new trial, reiterating his reasons for proceeding in McBride's absence. 44 McBride challenges the district court's decision to proceed with the trial in her absence on two grounds: (1) that the court erred in determining that she was voluntarily absent under Fed.R.Crim.P. 43(b); and (2) that the court erred in failing to hold, sua sponte, a competency hearing before determining that she had waived her right to be present. We conclude that both arguments fail.
45 The right of a criminal defendant to be present at her trial is preserved by both the Sixth Amendment and the common law. Illinois v. Allen, 397 U.S. 337, 338, 90 S.Ct. 1057, 1058, 25 L.Ed.2d 353 (1970). The right to be present is also implicated by the fair trial concerns of the Due Process clauses of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. Kentucky v. Stincer, 482 U.S. 730, 745, 107 S.Ct. 2658, 2667, 96 L.Ed.2d 631 (1987). This right is codified in Fed.R.Crim.P. 43(a). 46 However, the right to be present is not absolute and can be waived by the defendant. Diaz v. United States, 223 U.S. 442, 445, 32 S.Ct. 250, 251, 56 L.Ed. 500 (1912). Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 43(b) provides that a district court may proceed with trial when a defendant who is initially present voluntarily absents himself after the trial has commenced. The Second Circuit has explained the policy behind the voluntary absence rule as follows:The deliberate absence of a defendant who knows that he stands accused in a criminal case and that the trial will begin on a day certain indicates nothing less than an intention to obstruct the orderly processes of justice. No defendant has a unilateral right to set the time or circumstances under which cases will be tried.... 47 Without this obligation on the accused the disposition of criminal cases would be subject to the whims of defendants who could frustrate the speedy satisfaction of justice by absenting themselves from their trials. 48 United States v. Tortora, 464 F.2d 1202, 1208 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 409 U.S. 1063, 93 S.Ct. 554, 34 L.Ed.2d 516 (1972). 49 This court has held that in deciding whether to proceed with trial despite the defendants' absence the district court must determine (1) whether the defendant's absence is knowing and voluntary, and (2) if so, whether the public interest in the need to proceed clearly outweighs that of the voluntarily absent defendant in attending the trial. United States v. Benavides, 596 F.2d 137, 139 (5th Cir.1979). We review the district court's finding that the defendant's absence is voluntary for clear error. Polizzi v. United States, 926 F.2d 1311, 1319 (2d Cir.1991); Fed.R.Crim.P. 52. The decision to proceed without a voluntarily absent defendant is reviewed for an abuse of discretion. See United States v. Hernandez, 842 F.2d 82, 85 (5th Cir.1988). 50 McBride primarily challenges the district court's finding that her absence was voluntary. This court has noted that the right of a criminally accused to be present at [her] trial cannot cursorily, and without inquiry, be deemed by the trial court to have been waived simply because the accused is not present when [she] should have been. United States v. Beltran-Nunez, 716 F.2d 287, 291 (5th Cir.1983). The trial judge must inquire into the reason for the defendant's absence and determine whether it constitutes a voluntary waiver of the right to be present. Id. Although not expressly decided by this court, other courts have held that voluntariness can be implied from the actions of the defendant. See United States v. Watkins, 983 F.2d 1413, 1419-20 (7th Cir.1993). Courts have also held that when an accused does not appear at a time when she knows she should, the absence will be found voluntary under Rule 43 in the absence of some compelling excuse. Tortora, 464 F.2d at 1210; see also United States v. Wright, 932 F.2d 868, 879 (10th Cir.1991) (Absence without compelling justification constitutes a waiver of the right to be present at trial.); United States v. Rogers, 853 F.2d 249, 252 (4th Cir.) ([Defendant's] voluntary absence without compelling justification ... constitutes a waiver of the right to be present.), cert. denied, 488 U.S. 946, 109 S.Ct. 375, 102 L.Ed.2d 364 (1988); cf. Cureton v. United States, 396 F.2d 671, 676 (D.C.Cir.1968) ([Defendant] must have no sound reason for remaining away.). 51 With these legal principles as a backdrop, we turn now to an analysis of the evidence. The records from the federal medical facility in Lexington, Kentucky, together with the Greenville hospital records (which the defense did not enter into the record until after the motion for new trial hearing), show that at most McBride suffered from depression and certain physical manifestations of depression--such as headaches and drowsiness. According to the Greenville Hospital records, when McBride checked herself into the hospital, she was drowsy but conscious. Although she complained of headaches, sore throat, and shortness of breath, she showed no indicia of a serious drug overdose. McBride's stomach was pumped, and tests were conducted on the contents. The tests revealed no signs of narcotics, although there was some indication that she had vomited earlier. The mental health report prepared at Delta Regional Medical Center, dated September 20, 1993, indicated that McBride took the pills because of her concern over the trial. According to the report, McBride showed no more suicidal tendencies and indicated that she would return to court. The exhaustive report prepared by the federal medical facility in Lexington, dated November 9, 1993, found that McBride suffered from a form of depression, but that she denied any further suicidal inclinations. The report notes that her typical functioning appears to be adequate and that her physical health was fine, aside from hypertension and moderate obesity. 52 We conclude therefore that the district court did not err in finding that McBride voluntarily absented herself from the trial. Despite several opportunities to do so, McBride presented no evidence that she was physically or mentally incapable of attending the trial. The record evidence reveals that McBride was depressed and did not wish to face trial and the prospect of a conviction. A defendant cannot disrupt a trial for these reasons. McBride's refusal to attend the trial was knowing and voluntary and constitutes a waiver of her right to be present. 53 McBride contends that this conclusion directly contradicts the First Circuit's decision in United States v. Latham, 874 F.2d 852 (1st Cir.1989). In Latham, the defendant had ingested a large amount of cocaine in an apparent suicide attempt. After only an hour and a half delay, the trial court, who was initially told that Latham had bought a plane ticket and had absconded, ruled that the absence was voluntary and ordered that the trial proceed in Latham's absence. Although new evidence subsequently showed that Latham's absence was due to a cocaine overdose, the trial court denied all requests for an evidentiary hearing as well as Latham's post-trial motions. 54 The First Circuit reversed Latham's conviction, holding that voluntary ingestion of a large amount of cocaine in an apparent suicide attempt is not ipso facto a voluntary absence. 5 Id. at 858. However, the facts in Latham are readily distinguishable from the instant case. Latham ingested a lethal amount of cocaine and was given only a 25% chance of survival. As the trial proceeded, he was in critical condition in the hospital. In contrast, if McBride injected drugs at all, no evidence suggested that her life was threatened, or even that she was seriously ill. Thus even if we accept Latham's premise that a suicide attempt is not a voluntary act, McBride's failure to appear after the court delayed the trial a day and a half was a knowing and voluntary waiver of her right to be present. 55 As to the second prong of the Benavides test, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in proceeding in McBride's voluntary absence. The burden of having to indefinitely postpone or possibly retry this multi-defendant trial with numerous out-of-state witnesses and a district-wide jury clearly outweighed McBride's non-existent or feeble excuse for declining to attend the trial. 6
56 McBride argues next that the district court erred by failing to hold a competency hearing after her alleged suicide attempt. She contends that the court could not have found her voluntarily absent without first determining her competence. Because McBride's attorney never filed a motion requesting a competency hearing, 7 we must determine whether the district court abused its discretion in failing sua sponte to order one. 18 U.S.C. Sec. 4241 provides that the court 57 shall order such a hearing on its own motion, if there is reasonable cause to believe that the defendant may presently be suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering him mentally incompetent to the extent that he is unable to understand the nature and consequences of the proceedings against him or to assist properly in his defense. 58 18 U.S.C. Sec. 4241; see also Flugence v. Butler, 848 F.2d 77, 79 (5th Cir.1988). Whether reasonable cause exists to put the court on notice that the defendant might be mentally incompetent is left to the sound discretion of the district court. United States v. Williams, 468 F.2d 819, 820 (5th Cir.1972). In determining whether there is a bona fide doubt as to the defendant's competence, the court considers three factors: (1) any history of irrational behavior, (2) the defendant's demeanor at trial, and (3) any prior medical opinion on competency. Davis, 545 F.2d at 464 (citing Drope v. Missouri, 420 U.S. 162, 95 S.Ct. 896, 43 L.Ed.2d 103 (1975)). 59 McBride argues that the ingestion of fifty antidepressants in an apparent suicide attempt was sufficient to constitute reasonable cause to hold a competency hearing. In Drope, the defendant shot himself in the stomach prior to the second day of trial. The district court failed sua sponte to order a competency hearing before finding the defendant voluntarily absent. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the failure to hold a competency hearing denied the defendant's right to a fair trial. 420 U.S. at 180, 95 S.Ct. at 908. 60 However, in Drope, the Supreme Court expressly refused to decide whether an attempted suicide itself creates reasonable cause for a competency hearing. Rather, it held that the suicide attempt together with the information about defendant's mental instability prior to trial and the defendant's wife's testimony regarding his instability created a sufficient doubt of his competence to stand trial to require further inquiry on the question. Id. 61 In this case, the evidence of incompetence was not sufficiently manifest that the district court abused its discretion in failing on its own motion to order a competency hearing. See Zapata v. Estelle, 588 F.2d 1017, 1021 (5th Cir.1979). There was no hint of incompetence before McBride's absence. After her absence, the district court stayed in close contact with McBride's physician, and the record reflects no information (except McBride's possible suicide attempt) that reflected adversely on her competency. The mental evaluation conducted at the hospital in Greenville does not indicate any severe mental problems or remaining suicidal thoughts. 8 Nor does the report from the federal medical facility in Lexington contain any information suggesting incompetency. The detailed report merely indicates that McBride was depressed but alert and that she had similar episodes in the past when confronted with stress. Thus, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in failing on its own motion to order a competency hearing.