Court Opinion

ID: 9851486
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 05:13:47.114312+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:20:58.535078
License: Public Domain

MEYER, Justice
(concurring).
I concur with the majority’s conclusion that the postconviction court’s summary dismissal was an abuse of discretion that requires reversal and remand. However, I write separately to highlight my concern that the lawyers and the court in this case did not appropriately consider the serious implications that clinical depression can have on a defendant’s competency.
A defendant has a due process right not to be tried or convicted of a criminal charge while he is incompetent. State v. Bauer, 310 Minn. 103, 114, 245 N.W.2d 848, 854—55 (1976) (citing Drope v. Missouri 420 U.S. 162, 171, 95 S.Ct. 896, 43 L.Ed.2d 103 (1975)). The law imposes a “protective duty” on the district court to make certain that the defendant is competent to stand trial. Id. at 108, 114 n. 7, 245 N.W.2d at 852, 855 n. 7; Minn.Stat. § 611.026 (2008). The district court has that same duty to a defendant who pleads guilty. Godinez v. Moran, 509 U.S. 389, 398-99, 113 S.Ct. 2680, 125 L.Ed.2d 321 (1993). A defendant is incompetent to plead guilty if he “(1) lacks sufficient ability to consult with a reasonable degree of rational understanding with defense counsel; or (2) is mentally ill or mentally deficient so as to be incapable of understanding the proceedings or participating in the defense.” Minn. R.Crim. P. 20.01, subd. 1.
If the district court finds that there is reason to doubt the defendant’s competency, the court must suspend the criminal proceedings and appoint an examiner to examine and report on the defendant’s mental condition. Minn. R.Crim. P. 20.01, subd. 2. Evidence of a defendant’s irrational behavior, his demeanor during a court *644proceeding, and prior medical opinions on competency are relevant in determining whether there is reason to doubt a defendant’s competence. State v. Camacho, 561 N.W.2d 160, 172 (Minn.1997) (citing Drope, 420 U.S. at 180, 95 S.Ct. 896). A decision on the need for further inquiry depends entirely on the surrounding circumstances; there are “no fixed or immutable signs” that indicate an answer to a question in which such “a wide range of manifestations and subtle nuances are implicated.” Drope, 420 U.S. at 180, 95 S.Ct. 896. A defendant’s demeanor during the proceedings on the record does not allow the court to ignore the defendant’s history of irrational behavior. See Pate v. Robinson, 383 U.S. 375, 385-86, 86 S.Ct. 836, 15 L.Ed.2d 815 (1966) (although demeanor at trial was relevant, it could not be relied upon to dispense with a competency hearing; evidence of defendant’s history of irrational behavior required further inquiry).
The question in front of the district court was whether a suicide attempt on the eve of a defendant’s request to plead guilty triggered the court’s “protective duty” to make certain the defendant was competent. Although some forms of depression would allow a defendant “to consult with a reasonable degree of rational understanding with defense counsel” or be capable of understanding and participating in the proceedings, Minn. R.Crim. P. 20.01, subd. 1, I assert that there are some forms of depression that would not.
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a manual that provides diagnostic criteria for mental disorders, contains a category of disorders called “mood disorders.” Am. Psychiatric Ass’n, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 345 (4th ed., text rev. 2000) (DSM-IV-TR). This category contains a range of mental illnesses, but is most commonly used to refer to either “unipolar” or “bipolar” depression. Id.
These mood disorders are diagnosed based on the occurrence of episodes. A Major Depressive Episode, summarily, is a period of at least two weeks when an individual has a depressed mood or the loss of interest in nearly all activities. DSM-IV-TR, supra, at 349. The individual must also experience other symptoms, such as changes in appetite or sleep, decreased energy, difficulty concentrating, or recurrent thoughts of death or suicide. Id. A person is diagnosed with unipolar depression, also termed Major Depressive Disorder by the DSM-IV, if that person experiences one or more Major Depressive Episodes and at least four additional depression symptoms. Id. at 345. Unipolar depression and its symptoms appear to be those most commonly associated with the term “depression.”
But depression may also incorporate manic episodes. A Manic Episode is “a distinct period during which there is an abnormally and persistently elevated, expansive, or irritable mood” for at least one week. Id. at 357. The individual also experiences symptoms such as inflated self-esteem, a decreased need for sleep, excessive involvement in pleasurable activities, and poor judgment. Id. Bipolar depression is characterized by the occurrence of one or more Manic Episodes and often one or more Major Depressive Episodes. Id. at 382. There are varying degrees of Manic Episodes, resulting in different diagnoses of bipolar depression. Id. at 361, 387 (distinguishing between Bipolar I Disorder and Bipolar II Disorder based on the less severe type of manic episode, a Hypomanic Episode, experienced by those with Bipolar II). Bipolar I Disorder can be severe enough to include symptoms of psychosis, such as hallucinations and delusional beliefs; such individuals “may be*645come physically assaultive or suicidal. Id. at 358-59.
The effect of these depression diagnoses depends on the severity of the individual’s symptoms. Some manifestations of these disorders have a short duration, or have only minor effects on an individual’s thought process. See DSM-IV-TR, supra, at 412. However, as the severity of symptoms increases, and as manifestations continue to persist, the defendant’s ability for rational understanding or decision-making could be implicated. Severe depressive episodes could so affect a person’s appreciation of consequences that the person has no motivation to protect his or her own self-interest. See Terry A. Maroney, Emotional Competence, “Rational Understanding,” and the Criminal Defendant, 43 ArmCrim. L.Rev. 1375, 1411 (2006). Mania can cause a person to overestimate his or her personal abilities, and thus, chances of success; further, people experiencing mania are more prone to impulsive and risky choices. Id. at 1412. Most notably, though, is the fact that both types of depression can greatly alter an individual’s perception of reality; depressive episodes can be so severe as to incorporate delusions and hallucinations and, as noted above, forms of Bipolar I Disorder can be accompanied by psychosis. See id. at 1410-11. Suicide attempts can signal a severe form of either type of depression.
My point in writing is to bring awareness to the wide range of effects that depression could have on a defendant’s ability to “consult with a reasonable degree of rational understanding with defense counsel.” Minn. R.Crim. P. 20.01, subd. 1. Normal or “only depressed” demeanor at a hearing should not end the inquiry into competency. The standard for requiring further inquiry is whether there is “reason to doubt the defendant’s competency.” Id., subd. 2. Recent irrational behavior, such as a serious suicide attempt, requires thoughtful, careful consideration about whether further evaluation is needed to determine a defendant’s competency.