Criminal
Jul. 24, 2002
Psychotic Medication Issue Turns Moot
REDWOOD CITY - A murder suspect who had been the subject of a legal fight over whether a mentally competent defendant could be forced to take anti-psychotic medication against his will was declared incompetent after all Monday.
San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Dale Hahn made the finding after both court-appointed psychiatrists agreed that Marvin Sullivan, accused in the 1998 shooting death of Millbrae police Officer David Chetcuti, was no longer competent to stand trial.
Hahn's ruling sends Sullivan back to Napa State Hospital. He had spent 21/2 years in that facility until a different judge ruled last year that he had recovered sufficiently to participate in his own trial defense.
Sullivan's trial has been postponed indefinitely. "It could be six months, a year, 10 years or never," said Steve Wagstaffe, San Mateo County's chief deputy district attorney.
Sullivan, who took his anti-psychotic drugs while in Napa, refused to continue with the medication after he was sent to San Mateo County's jail in preparation for his trial. Consequently, his condition deteriorated. Vincent O'Malley, one of his defense attorneys, has said in court papers that his client would not discuss the case with counsel at all.
Wagstaffe sought a court order earlier this year requiring Sullivan to be medicated against his will even though at that time he had been declared mentally competent.
While federal courts have held that forced medication is allowed under certain circumstances, those decisions have applied only in cases in which the defendant has been declared incompetent.
O'Malley had objected to any forced medication under the circumstances. He argued Sullivan either was competent, in which case he could not be made to take medication against his will, or else he needed to be sent back to Napa State Hospital for treatment.
Wagstaffe's motion never was decided because county psychiatrists said ethical concerns precluded their cooperation. The prosecutor dropped the matter, although he said he would seek state legislation to allow the practice in the future.
"I don't see how [the Legislature] could pass a law that would pass constitutional muster," said O'Malley, a San Mateo attorney.
The developments have frustrated Chetcuti's family and former colleagues. Wagstaffe has complained that Sullivan's refusal to take his medication while in jail has allowed him to avoid his murder trial.
Hahn told attorneys he believes Sullivan eventually will be found competent and said they should be ready to go to trial if and when that happens. People v. Sullivan, SC50404A.
Craiq Anderson
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