Dusky V United States Summary

In Dusky v. United States (1959), two standards are created for determining whether or not a person is competent to stand trial. These standards do not go without flaws and are questioned by psychologists and psychological research. Milton R. Dusky had a demanding life throughout his childhood and adult years. He became an alcoholic because of the challenges he confronted daily. He had little money, could barely keep a job, got divorced, and could not take care of his son. He suffered greatly from anxiety. After he contemplated suicide, he sought treatment at a Psychiatric center in Kansas City, Missouri (Meyer & Weaver 2006). The records from the Psychiatric Receiving Center indicated that he had depression, alcoholism, family and social

He did not remember some events from the day of the kidnapping. Dusky received a court-appointed attorney and pled not guilty at his arraignment in September of 1958. His counsel requested evaluations regarding his competency to stand trial and his mental capacity for the crime. He was sent to the Federal Medical Center for Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri to be evaluated for competency and responsibility. He was held there for approximately four months for treatment and examinations. In January 1959, he had a competency hearing where one of the psychiatrists from the medical center was used to determine Dusky’s competence. His report from October 1958 stated that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, he denies complete memory of the day of the alleged kidnapping, and he was oriented to time, place and person. The report in October was also written by the Chief of Neuropsychiatric Services, which indicate that Dusky was not competent to stand trial. The report also stated that due to a lifetime of depression, anxiety, alcoholism, and family problems, which indicated mental illness, the staff was unable to tell whether Dusky could differentiate between right and wrong on the day of the alleged offense. In January 1959, there was another report written which stated that Dusky remained mentally stable for six weeks after the October report was written, but then became increasing agitated,

Another competency trial was held in October of 1960. This time, the psychologist testified that he could remember certain events from the day of the crime and he had “sufficient present ability to consult with his lawyer with a reasonable degree of rational understanding” and also that he had a “rational as well as factual understanding of the proceedings in court against him.” The experts felt that Dusky was competent to stand trial. During the second trial, Dusky was found guilty again, but this time his sentenced was reduce to 20 years in prison with eligibility for parole on 5 years instead of the 45 year sentence (United States Court of Appeals Eight Circuit). Dusky is significant because the Supreme Court of the United States determined standards (which became the “Dusky Standards) for which due process would be satisfied in matters of competency to stand trial. The aforementioned two standards are “sufficient present ability to consult with his lawyer with a reasonable degree of rational understanding” and “rational as well as factual understanding of the proceedings in court against