State Rep. Doug Wozniak today introduced a plan to help address the backlog of criminal cases waiting evaluation at the state forensic center and help local law enforcement access alternative options when the state is unable to complete a mental competency exam in a timely manner.

Wozniak, of Shelby Township, said criminal cases involving defendant competency questions currently move at a painfully slow pace. Right now, examinations to determine a defendant’s competency to stand trial must be completed at the Center for Forensic Psychiatry, a facility run by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

“The forensic center is so backlogged that many people are forced to wait months before they are examined,” Wozniak said. “In the meantime, trials are delayed and defendants languish in county jails that often don’t have the proper resources to treat the mentally ill.”

If a defendant is to be held in jail pending trial, the legislation would require the forensic center to complete a mental competency examination within 30 days of a court order. If the center does not schedule and complete the examination within 30 days, the court may appoint independent qualified personnel outside of the center to complete the examination.

House Bills 5325-27 – which Wozniak sponsored alongside Reps. Julie Calley (R-Portland) and Abdullah Hammoud (D-Dearborn) – have been referred to the House Judiciary Committee for consideration.

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