Opinion ID: 733396
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Post-Trial Hearings

Text: 18 On June 1, 1993 Judge Wood appointed Joel M. Cohen, Esq. to represent Schmidt at sentencing and in other post-trial proceedings and also ordered additional psychiatric examinations before it reconsidered its competency determination. Separate hearings were held on Schmidt's competence and the validity of the waiver proceedings. 19 Through attorney Cohen, Schmidt averred that her opening statement and her questioning of witnesses effectively waived her Fifth Amendment right to remain silent and, if she was unaware of that risk, her waiver of counsel might have been unknowing and therefore invalid. Because Schmidt placed her understanding of the law directly at issue, Judge Wood found that she had waived her attorney-client privilege and allowed attorney Ricco to testify at the hearing. New counsel agreed it was appropriate for attorney Ricco to testify. Ricco said he had told Schmidt that her decision to represent herself would require her to act in a capable manner and thereby make it more difficult to convince the jury of her diminished capacity. In a February 13, 1995 sentencing hearing, the district court reaffirmed its original decision that Schmidt's waiver was knowing and intelligent. While acknowledging it did not specifically warn Schmidt of her Fifth Amendment rights, it found she was nonetheless aware of them. 20 The district court held 13 days of hearings in August 1994 and February 1995 to determine whether Schmidt suffered from a mental illness that rendered her incompetent either to stand trial or to be sentenced. It heard testimony from five doctors who examined the defendant after trial pursuant to court orders. It heard testimony as well as from Dr. Marina Boyadjieva, a doctor who treated defendant before 1976 in Bulgaria, where Schmidt was born and raised. Dr. Luis Gonzalez, another psychiatrist, testified at the defense's request. A number of these witnesses had not testified at defendant's trial, including Drs. Boyadjieva and Gonzalez, who were located by attorney Cohen for these competency hearings. Medical records not submitted at trial were also presented. 21 Three doctors testified that Schmidt only suffered from a personality disorder or a mild mood disorder. One doctor, Dr. Stephen Teich, believed she suffered from a schizoaffective disorder, and another was of the opinion that she suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. Dr. Teich was the only doctor who considered defendant incompetent. The evidence concerning Schmidt's mental state as a young adult in Bulgaria was discounted as the trial court related its own observations of Schmidt during the proceedings, describing her considerable intelligence and her understanding of both the case and potential defense strategies. The district court determined again that Schmidt was competent at the time of trial and was now competent to be sentenced.