title: Competence to stand trial evaluations of sovereign citizens: a case series and primer of odd political and legal beliefs.
abstract: Sovereign citizens hold a variety of beliefs that challenge the legitimacy of the United States government and criminal justice system. In criminal cases, sovereign citizens typically raise a variety of seemingly strange objections to the proceedings that can cause court participants to believe the defendant is not competent to stand trial. The author's case files were reviewed to identify all defendants who espoused sovereign citizen beliefs during a court-ordered competence-to-stand-trial evaluation. This case series consisted of nine evaluations completed between 2003 and 2012. A review of the outcomes in these cases showed that sovereign citizens typically have the capacity to understand criminal proceedings and assist an attorney.
authors.affiliation: Dr. Parker is Professor of Clinical Psychiatry and Director of Forensic Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University Medical School, Indianapolis, IN. geoparke@iupui.edu.
authors.forename: George F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Parker
mesh_terms: D002961:Civil Rights / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D032882:Comprehension; D003416:Criminal Law / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003469:Culture; D003702:Delusions / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D005104:Expert Testimony / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D016743:Mental Competency / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011057:Politics; D014481:United States