Court Orders California To Start Competency Restoration Within 28 Days For Defendants Deemed Incompetent To Stand Trial

On June 15, 2021, a three-judge panel of the 2nd District Court of Appeal in San Francisco ordered the state of California to start competency restoration services within 28 days for defendants deemed incompetent to stand trial (IST) due to psychiatric disorders or intellectual/developmental disabilities (I/DD). The panel agreed with a trial court that due to delays in starting competency restoration services, the state has systematically violated the due process rights of IST defendants. State law requires competency restoration to start within 35 days. However, in part due to a lack of state hospital beds, the average . . .