United States v. Roach
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
590 F.2d 181 (5th Cir. 1979)
Beacher Roach (defendant) was charged with bank robbery, and the prosecution sought to call getaway driver Brenda Jackson as a witness, even though she had been emotionally troubled and using drugs in the months before trial and had been separately deemed competent to stand trial for her own role in the robbery about three months earlier. Roach requested a full psychiatric evaluation of Jackson's competency as a witness, but the district court instead held a preliminary competency hearing, found Jackson lucid and responsive, and deemed her competent; she testified, the jury convicted Roach, and he appealed, arguing a full psychiatric evaluation was necessary.
Whether a trial court has broad discretion in determining whether to order a psychiatric evaluation of a witness for competency purposes.