Opinion ID: 1388553
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: competence phase evidence

Text: After the guilt verdict was rendered, defendant moved for a competence hearing (§§ 1367, 1368.) The motion was granted under circumstances which will be discussed later. Criminal proceedings were suspended, competence phase counsel was appointed, and a new jury was empaneled. At the ensuing hearing, two court-appointed psychiatrists testified that they had recently examined defendant and found him competent. Dr. Small explained that defendant was cooperative and logical, and showed no sign of serious mental disorder; even if defendant was being truthful in claiming to have experienced a midtrial hallucination of Lashan, such an experience is neither disabling per se nor unusual for persons suffering from personality problems, stress, and/or a guilty conscience. Dr. Bryan testified that defendant suffered from a passive-aggressive personality problem and sexual deviation, but that he spoke about the criminal trial in an appropriate and rational manner. Defendant knew that any hallucination he had experienced was not real. Finally, a deputy sheriff testified that defendant's personal habits and deportment in jail over the preceding year were excellent, and that he never acted in a disruptive or bizarre fashion. The jury found defendant competent to undergo a penalty trial.