ABSTRACT

It has been a generally accepted legal principle in Western jurisprudence that incompetent individuals should not be allowed to proceed with a trial ( Blackstone, 1783; Frith's Case, 1790). The notion that an individual must be competent to proceed in the criminal justice system originated in English common law and has been traced to the 17th century (Winick, 1983). Its roots are found in the common law prohibition on trials in absentia and in the difficulties encountered by the courts when the defendant remained mute 1 (either “mute by visitation from God” or “mute of malice”) and failed to plead to the charges (Winick, 1983).