US v. Minton: Minton was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm “after an episode that started with him knocking on a stranger’s door to ask for a drink of water and ended with him pulling a gun.” Minton was charged on December 16, 2019, but found incompetent on June 11, 2020. After being transported for treatment, the district court held that Minton’s competency had been restored on September 27, 2021. Minton unsuccessfully moved to dismiss the indictment under the Speedy Trial Act and was ultimately convicted.
On appeal, the Fourth Circuit affirmed the denial of Minton’s motion to dismiss. The issue was a “pure question of law” – specifically, “how much of the 473-day period” between the incompetency/competency determinations “is included in the Speedy Trial Act calculation.” The court concluded that none of it was, based on the portion of the Act excluded any delay “resulting from the fact that the defendant is mentally incompetent or physically unable to stand trial.” That provision is “absolute” and did not support Minton’s invocation of another provision that might exclude the 139-day period while he was waiting to be transported for treatment.
No comments:
Post a Comment