Opinion ID: 1180863
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Shackling of defendant during psychiatric interviews

Text: (50a) Defendant was shackled and accompanied by a police officer during his psychiatric examinations with Dr. French, one of the court-appointed psychiatrists. The record discloses Dr. French expressly requested this procedure and informed the court that he would not interview defendant unless his request was granted. The jury was informed of the procedure and learned that the basis for Dr. French's request was his concern for his personal safety. Trial counsel's decision not to object to the procedure does not constitute ineffective assistance of counsel. Defendant similarly claims counsel should have attempted to exclude the testimony of Drs. French and Robinson because defendant was shackled during interviews with them and because a police officer was present during the interviews. We believe defendant's concerns go to the weight of the doctors' testimony, not to admissibility. (51) (See fn. 16.), (50b) We note that defense counsel emphasized to the jury that defendant was shackled during these interviews and argued that it made defendant uncomfortable and the doctors' evaluations less accurate. [16]