People v. Mosqueda CA1/2

BACKGROUND

A complaint filed on January 6, 2021, charged Mosqueda with one felony count of murder (§ 187, subd. (a)) and one misdemeanor count of disobeying a protective order (§ 273.6, subd. (a)). It was further alleged that in committing these offenses Mosqueda violated probation in three prior cases. Mosqueda entered a plea of not guilty on January 15, 2021. The preliminary hearing was set for February 26, 2021, then continued multiple times. On December 15, 2021, defense counsel expressed a doubt as to Mosqueda’s competency (§ 1368). Based on defense counsel’s comments and the court’s own observations, the court suspended criminal proceedings pursuant to sections 1367 and 1368.2 On January 5, 2022, the court appointed Alexis Smith, Psy.D., and Sumandeep Kaur, Psy.D., to evaluate Mosqueda. Initially, neither was able to render an opinion, and they were subsequently reappointed to review additional material. Both thereafter submitted reports concluding Mosqueda was not competent to stand trial. On July 20, 2022, the parties submitted on the competency reports. Based on the reports, the court found Mosqueda was not presently able to understand the nature and purpose of the…