Opinion ID: 1917909
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 59

Heading: Insanity at Time of Offense; Appointment of Expert Witnesses.

Text: When on a prosecution by indictment or information the existence of insanity on the part of the defendant at the time of the alleged commission of the offense charged becomes an issue in the cause, the court may appoint one or more disinterested qualified experts, not exceeding three, to examine the defendant. If the court does so, the clerk shall notify the prosecuting attorney and counsel for the defendant of such appointment and shall give the names and addresses of the experts so appointed. If the defendant is at large on bail or cited or summoned to appear, the court, if it finds that the examination cannot be conducted unless the defendant is confined, may commit him to custody pending the examination by such experts. The appointment of experts by the court shall not preclude the State or defendant from calling expert witnesses to testify at the trial and in case the defendant is committed to custody by the court they shall be permitted to have free access to the defendant for purposes of examination or observation. The experts appointed by the court shall be summoned to testify at the trial and may be examined by the court and by counsel for the State and the defendant. (d) If a motion under subdivision (a) or a notice under subdivision (b) of this rule is filed, the court may order the defendant taken into custody if he is not already in custody until the determination of his sanity can be made. When a defendant is taken into custody, the court shall forthwith conduct the examination to determine the sanity of the defendant. The defendant shall be released on bail unless it is found that he is likely to injure himself or others. Committee Note : Subdivision (a)(3) refer to Jackson v. Indiana, [406 U.S. 715] 92 S.Ct. 1845, p. 1854 [32 L.Ed.2d 435]; also, United States v. Curry [4 Cir.], 410 F.2d 1372. Subdivision (d) is added to give the court authority to confine an insane person who is likely to cause harm to others even though he might otherwise be entitled to bail. The amendment does not apply unless the defendant contends that he is insane at the time of trial or at the time the offense was committed. The purpose of the amendment is to prevent admittedly insane persons from being at large when there is a likelihood they may injure themselves or others.