Opinion ID: 75827
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Trial and Sentence Proceedings

Text: 4 In August 1988, Sanchez-Velasco was tried and convicted for the murder, sexual battery, and robbery of young Kathy Encenarro in December of 1986. Before trial, Sanchez-Velasco's counsel requested that he be evaluated both for competency to stand trial and for sanity at the time of the offense. The trial court appointed six mental health experts — Drs. Riechenberg, Marina, Haber, Berglass, Mutter, and Jaslow — to examine him; he was examined by each of them; and none of them found him either insane at the time of the crime or incompetent to stand trial. During the trial, after Sanchez-Velasco had interrupted the testimony of a government witness with an outburst, his counsel asked that he be evaluated again for competency to stand trial. He was examined by two new doctors — Drs. Castiello and Jimenez — both of whom found him to be competent. At the conclusion of the guilt phase of the trial, the jury found Sanchez-Velasco guilty of murder, sexual battery, and theft. Sanchez-Velasco v. State, 570 So.2d 908, 912 (Fla.1990) ( Sanchez-Velasco I ). 5 At the penalty phase of the trial, the defense presented the testimony of Dr. Haber, who had examined Sanchez-Velasco before trial, and who testified that he had an emotional disturbance but was legally sane. Sanchez-Velasco v. State, 702 So.2d 224, 225-26 (Fla.1997) ( Sanchez-Velasco II ). Sanchez-Velasco himself also made a statement to the jury, in which he denied that he was mentally ill, emotionally disturbed, or unable to appreciate the criminality of his conduct. Sanchez-Velasco I, 570 So.2d at 912. At the conclusion of the penalty phase, the jury recommended the death penalty by an eight to four vote. At the sentence proceeding that followed before the judge the defense, seeking again to establish that Sanchez-Velasco's mental condition should serve as a mitigating circumstance, presented another psychiatrist. This one, Dr. Marina, who had examined him before trial, testified that Sanchez-Velasco was mentally competent but that he might be suffering from some sort of mental disturbance. Sanchez-Velasco II, 702 So.2d 224 at 226. 1 Ultimately, the court rejected the opinions the two defense mental health experts had given during the penalty phase of the trial, and concluded that Sanchez-Velasco, in addition to being undisputably competent, had no extreme mental or emotional condition that might mitigate against a death sentence, and it imposed one. Sanchez-Velasco I, 570 So.2d at 910-13. 6 Counting them up, from the pretrial through the sentencing stage Sanchez-Velasco was examined for competency by eight different experts, and each one concluded he was mentally competent. Sanchez-Velasco II, 702 So.2d at 226. There was no disagreement about that.