Castro v. State
After a trial court ordered a new competency evaluation upon finding appellant had 'decompensated,' no further evaluation or hearing occurred; nearly two years later a different judge found him competent based solely on the original 2022 evaluation without a valid stipulation waiving a hearing. The Fourth DCA reversed, holding this violated competency procedure requirements, and remanded for the trial court to first determine whether a nunc pro tunc competency evaluation is feasible.
Key facts
- Appellant was ordered to undergo a new competency evaluation after the trial court found he had 'decompensated,' but nearly two years passed without completion of that evaluation or a competency hearing.
- A different judge subsequently found appellant competent based solely on a 2022 evaluation, without a valid stipulation waiving the required competency hearing.
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Why it matters
This opinion reinforces the rule that once a trial court orders a follow-up competency evaluation due to observed decompensation, that process must be completed before proceeding to trial, and reliance on a stale… — full analysis with a trial
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