Nguyen
United States v. Nguyen
Opinion
lead Opinion
Legge, J.
ORDER FOR COMPETENCY EXAMINATION
Defendant Nguyen has been indicted on one count of bank robbery in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113 (a). Defense counsel states that he has encountered serious difficulties getting Nguyen’s assistance in preparing a defense, and believes that Nguyen may be incompetent to stand trial. Defense counsel *1222 has therefore requested a competency hearing pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4241 (a), which provides:
The court has read the parties’ papers and finds that there is reasonable cause to grant defendant’s motion for a competency hearing under the standard above, and to order a competency examination by an expert.
The parties disagree on what use may later be made at trial of defendant’s statements elicited in the course of the competency examination. The government preliminarily contends that any ruling by this court on that issue is now premature, because no evidence yet exists which the government might want to use. However, a witness seeking the protection of the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination must assert the privilege before he testifies in order to avoid waiving it. United States v. Kordel, 397 U.S. 1, 7-10 , 90 S.Ct. 763, 766-69…