Bill Text: MI SB0723 | 2023-2024 | 102nd Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Criminal procedure: mental capacity; evaluation of competency to waive Miranda rights; require. Amends 1974 PA 258 (MCL 330.1001 - 330.2106) by adding secs. 1080, 1081, 1082 & 1083.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-02-22 - Referred To Committee On Civil Rights, Judiciary, And Public Safety [SB0723 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2023-SB0723-Introduced.html
SENATE BILL NO. 723
A bill to amend 1974 PA 258, entitled
"Mental health code,"
(MCL 330.1001 to 330.2106) by adding sections 1080, 1081, 1082, and 1083.
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 1080. (1) A defendant is presumed to have been competent to waive the defendant's Miranda rights. The issue of a defendant's competence to have waived the defendant's Miranda rights may be raised by the defense, the court, or the prosecution. The court shall determine the procedure for raising the issue by court rule.
(2) The court shall determine if the defendant was competent to waive the defendant's Miranda rights. A defendant was competent to waive the defendant's Miranda rights if the defendant's waiver was knowingly and intelligently made, which means that the defendant understood all of the following:
(a) The defendant did not have to speak.
(b) The defendant had the right to the presence of counsel.
(c) What the defendant said could be used in a later trial against the defendant.
Sec. 1081. (1) On a showing that a defendant may not have been competent to waive the defendant's Miranda rights, the court shall order the defendant to undergo an examination by a qualified clinician of either the center for forensic psychiatry or another facility officially certified by the department to perform examinations that relate to the issue of competence to waive Miranda rights. The defendant shall make himself or herself available for the examination at the places and times established by the center or other certified facility. If the defendant, after being notified, fails to make himself or herself available for the examination, the court may order the defendant's commitment to the center or other facility without a hearing.
(2) When a defendant is to be held in a jail or similar place of detention pending trial, the center or other facility may perform the examination in the place of detention or may notify the sheriff to transport the defendant to the center or other facility for the examination, and the sheriff shall return the defendant to the place of detention on completion of the examination.
(3) Except as provided in subsection (1), when a defendant is not to be held in a jail or similar place of detention pending trial, the court shall commit the defendant to the center or other facility only if the commitment is necessary for the performance of the examination.
(4) A defendant must be released by the center or other facility on completion of the examination.
(5) As used in this section and section 1082, "examination" means a court-ordered examination of a defendant directed to develop information relevant to a determination of the defendant's competence to have waived the defendant's Miranda rights.
Sec. 1082. (1) When the defendant is ordered to undergo an examination under section 1081, the center or other facility shall, for the purpose of gathering psychiatric and other information pertinent to the issue of the defendant's competence to have waived the defendant's Miranda rights, examine the defendant and consult with defense counsel, and may consult with the prosecutor or other persons. Defense counsel must be available for consultation with the center or other facility. The examination must be performed, defense counsel must be consulted, and a written report must be submitted to the court, prosecuting attorney, and defense counsel within 60 days of the date of the order.
(2) The report described in subsection (1) must contain all of the following:
(a) The clinical findings of the center or other facility.
(b) The facts, in reasonable detail, on which the findings are based, and, on request of the court, the defense, or the prosecution, additional facts germane to the findings.
(c) The opinion of the center or other facility on the issue of the defendant's competence to have waived the defendant's Miranda rights.
(3) The qualified clinician's opinion on the defendant's competence to have waived the defendant's Miranda rights derived from the examination may not be admitted as evidence for any purpose in the pending criminal proceedings, except on the issues to be determined in the hearings required or permitted by section 1081. This bar to testimony does not prohibit the examining qualified clinician from presenting at other stages in the criminal proceedings opinions that concern criminal responsibility, disposition, or other issues if the opinions were originally requested by the court and are available. Information gathered in the course of a prior examination that is of historical value to the examining qualified clinician may be utilized in the formulation of an opinion in any subsequent court-ordered evaluation.
Sec. 1083. (1) On receipt of the written report under section 1082, the court shall have the defendant appear in court and hold a hearing within a reasonable time.
(2) On the basis of the evidence admitted at the hearing, the court shall determine the issue of whether the defendant was competent to waive the defendant's Miranda rights. If the court finds that the defendant's Miranda rights waiver was not knowingly and intelligently made, the court shall determine the appropriate remedy at law.
(3) The written report is admissible as competent evidence in the hearing, unless the defense or prosecution objects, but not for any other purpose in the pending criminal proceeding. The defense, the prosecution, and the court on its own motion may present additional evidence relevant to the issues to be determined at the hearing.
(4) The right of the defendant to be at liberty pending trial, on bail or otherwise, must not be impaired because the defendant has raised the issue of the defendant's competence to have waived Miranda rights or because the defendant was determined to be incompetent to have waived Miranda rights.
(5) After a hearing under this section, the defendant's trial must commence as soon as practicable.
