Drope v. Missouri

Background

A man was indicted for the forcible rape of his wife and his lawyer asked in advance for a psychiatric examination and treatment after a doctor’s report described agitation, trouble relating, circumstantial speech, and diagnoses including anxiety and borderline deficiency. The trial began in June; the wife testified about the assault and later said he had tried to choke her the Sunday before trial. The defendant failed to appear the next morning and shot himself, was hospitalized, and the judge refused a mistrial. The prosecution finished its case without the defendant present, a jury convicted him, and he later received life imprisonment. State courts found his absence voluntary and denied relief. At a later postconviction hearing, psychiatrists testified that a suicide attempt and the earlier reports could raise questions about fitness to stand trial.

Reasoning

The Court asked whether the failure to order further inquiry into the defendant’s mental fitness and the decision to continue trial in his absence denied him a fair trial. Relying on earlier decisions about competence to stand trial, the Court held that the pretrial psychiatric report, the wife’s trial testimony, and the suicide attempt together created a sufficient doubt about the defendant’s ability to understand and assist in his defense. Because the defendant was absent after the suicide attempt, the court and counsel could not observe him, and the proper course was to suspend proceedings and obtain a psychiatric evaluation before continuing.

Real world impact

The ruling requires trial courts to give prompt weight to psychiatric signs and irrational behavior and to order evaluation when reasonable doubt arises. A late, after-the-fact evaluation is often inadequate; a conviction reached without such inquiry can be reversed. The State may retry the defendant, but only if he is competent at the time of any new trial.