Mental Ward?

Judge sends Ward Weaver, accused of killing 2, to hospital instead of to trial

By Jim Redden

The Portland Tribune, Apr 23, 2004, Updated Oct 30, 2009

Accused killer Ward Weaver was declared mentally unfit to stand trial by Clackamas County Judge Robert Herndon on Thursday.

Herndon ordered Weaver transferred to the Oregon State Hospital in Salem. His double murder and sexual assault trial, originally set for June 1, will be postponed pending a decision on whether he is fit to stand trial.

Herndon’s ruling came after a daylong hearing on Weaver’s mental state. Weaver’s defense attorneys Ñ Michael Barker and Peter Fahy Ñ filed a motion to delay the trial, saying that Weaver was mentally unable to assist in his own defense.

“He does suffer from a mental illness or defect,” Herndon said, noting that Weaver was on suicide watch at the Clackamas County Jail, had stopped taking antidepression medications and was not talking to his attorneys.

Under Oregon law, hospital officials must evaluate Weaver within 60 days to determine whether there is a reasonable probability that he will recover enough to stand trial in the foreseeable future. The officials must report their findings to the court within 30 days of that determination.

Oregon law allows the hospital to detain people for evaluation for three years. However, the state could move to commit him to the hospital indefinitely at that point, said Susan Mandiberg, a criminal law professor at Lewis & Clark Law School.

“I don’t think people should worry that Ward Weaver will be walking the streets anytime soon,” she said.

Herndon directed that Weaver be placed under 24-hour supervision at the hospital. Herndon predicted that if Weaver is not mentally ill, hospital officials will find that out. If that happens, Herndon said, Weaver will quickly be returned to Clackamas County for trial.

Defense not yet at issue

The motion filed by Weaver’s attorney was not an attempt to lay the foundation for an insanity defense.

“The issue of whether a person is fit to proceed to trial is an entirely different question,” said Stephen Kanter, a constitutional law professor at Lewis & Clark. “His lawyers are not arguing that he was insane at the time he committed a crime.”

Herndon said he would require Weaver to take antidepressants at the hospital.

1 | 2 Next Page >>

Facebook	Digg	Del.icio.us
Newsvine	Stumbleupon	Reddit