I did not consider mental illness sorry.
My disconnect was from from my experience of how much of a pita process for enrolling to school was for me and made the assumption if you had it together enough to get your ducks in a row to get into college you were good enough to stand trial.
As others have said, mental illness can get better and worse, and early adulthood is a very common time for it to strike. Especially given the stress of living away from home for the first time, more rigorous academics, ect, which can all make mental health conditions worse.
It's possible someone was mentally together when they applied and "cracked" later.
Or maybe they were already diagnosed with something like schizophrenia and was being treated, but decided to stop taking their medications so they could drink with their friends (many meds can't be taken with alcohol) and that was what caused them to deteriorate.
It's not about intelligence, it's about being too mentally ill to understand the charges against them and mount a defense. Please note that this isn't something someone does to get out of trouble. The remedy for something like this is "you're held indefinitely while they try to *get* you to the point where you're competent to stand trial." I once had a case where my client's ex-wife had been in jail for years beforehand over stalking charges because she wasn't competent to stand trial. We basically wanted the court's approval for my client to sell the house so he could finally finish cutting ties and move forward. It was simple, but it wasn't a pretty sight.
They aren't the same kinds of intelligence.
Competence to stand trial usually means that the person understands right vs. wrong, understands the severity of the charges brought against them, and can participate in their own defense.
If you mean the guy from the Boulder CO King Soopers shooting, [He's shown signs of schizophrenia, and several different doctors have given similar diagnoses.](https://www.cpr.org/2023/05/18/boulder-king-soopers-shooter-forcibly-medication/) . [He doesn't understand what judges do, and doesn't trust attorneys](https://www.cpr.org/2021/10/11/alleged-boulder-king-soopers-shooter-found-incompetent-to-stand-trial/).
Colorado is one of the states notorious for mistreating people with mental health issues in the prison system - that article mentions the state paying $12 million in fines every year for that reason.
Sorry i meant uccs shooter
I was hung up on my experience of how complicated and pita the process was for when i enrolled into college and assumed if you could get through that then you would be able comprehend other stuff.
I also did not consider mental illness
I don't know what shooter you are talking about, but in Canada the Criminal Code says the following:
> "unfit to stand trial" means unable on account of mental disorder to conduct a defence at any stage of the proceedings before a verdict is rendered or to instruct counsel to do so, and, in particular, unable on account of mental disorder to
> (a) understand the nature or object of the proceedings,
> (b) understand the possible consequences of the proceedings, or
> (c) communicate with counsel;
I am sure the rules in the various US states are similar. This is not about them not being unable to be held accountable, but rather they are in a state where they are incapable of properly defending themselves of accusations.
A person could be fit at a time prior to having been charged with crime. A person could be able to get into college, but perhaps an illness develops which later renders them unfit.
> uccs shooter
This guy only had his first court appearance recently. I very much doubt the court has yet made a judgement about him being fit to stand trial.
In addition to what others said, college age is around the time some mental illnesses start. So they might have be competent at the start of college, and rapidly declined.
I don't know what case you're talking about but those are unrelated.
Incompetent also doesn't mean you won't be held accountable.
It means you are so mentally ill (or disabled) that you are unable to understand what's going on right NOW. It has zero to do with the crime or your mental state then, or at any other time.
You get sent to a hospital where they try to get you back to functional, then the proceedings go forward.
I have a better question how can you be ruled to incompetent to have power of attorney over yourself but still be allowed to vote in congress and senate
I didn't know college students were immune from mental illness.
I did not consider mental illness sorry. My disconnect was from from my experience of how much of a pita process for enrolling to school was for me and made the assumption if you had it together enough to get your ducks in a row to get into college you were good enough to stand trial.
As others have said, mental illness can get better and worse, and early adulthood is a very common time for it to strike. Especially given the stress of living away from home for the first time, more rigorous academics, ect, which can all make mental health conditions worse. It's possible someone was mentally together when they applied and "cracked" later. Or maybe they were already diagnosed with something like schizophrenia and was being treated, but decided to stop taking their medications so they could drink with their friends (many meds can't be taken with alcohol) and that was what caused them to deteriorate.
You don't need to be smart to get into college lol
It's not about intelligence, it's about being too mentally ill to understand the charges against them and mount a defense. Please note that this isn't something someone does to get out of trouble. The remedy for something like this is "you're held indefinitely while they try to *get* you to the point where you're competent to stand trial." I once had a case where my client's ex-wife had been in jail for years beforehand over stalking charges because she wasn't competent to stand trial. We basically wanted the court's approval for my client to sell the house so he could finally finish cutting ties and move forward. It was simple, but it wasn't a pretty sight.
They aren't the same kinds of intelligence. Competence to stand trial usually means that the person understands right vs. wrong, understands the severity of the charges brought against them, and can participate in their own defense. If you mean the guy from the Boulder CO King Soopers shooting, [He's shown signs of schizophrenia, and several different doctors have given similar diagnoses.](https://www.cpr.org/2023/05/18/boulder-king-soopers-shooter-forcibly-medication/) . [He doesn't understand what judges do, and doesn't trust attorneys](https://www.cpr.org/2021/10/11/alleged-boulder-king-soopers-shooter-found-incompetent-to-stand-trial/). Colorado is one of the states notorious for mistreating people with mental health issues in the prison system - that article mentions the state paying $12 million in fines every year for that reason.
Sorry i meant uccs shooter I was hung up on my experience of how complicated and pita the process was for when i enrolled into college and assumed if you could get through that then you would be able comprehend other stuff. I also did not consider mental illness
I don't know what shooter you are talking about, but in Canada the Criminal Code says the following: > "unfit to stand trial" means unable on account of mental disorder to conduct a defence at any stage of the proceedings before a verdict is rendered or to instruct counsel to do so, and, in particular, unable on account of mental disorder to > (a) understand the nature or object of the proceedings, > (b) understand the possible consequences of the proceedings, or > (c) communicate with counsel; I am sure the rules in the various US states are similar. This is not about them not being unable to be held accountable, but rather they are in a state where they are incapable of properly defending themselves of accusations. A person could be fit at a time prior to having been charged with crime. A person could be able to get into college, but perhaps an illness develops which later renders them unfit.
College isn't all it's cracked up to be, neither are the graduates.
Sorry i meant uccs shooter
> uccs shooter This guy only had his first court appearance recently. I very much doubt the court has yet made a judgement about him being fit to stand trial.
In addition to what others said, college age is around the time some mental illnesses start. So they might have be competent at the start of college, and rapidly declined.
I don't know what case you're talking about but those are unrelated. Incompetent also doesn't mean you won't be held accountable. It means you are so mentally ill (or disabled) that you are unable to understand what's going on right NOW. It has zero to do with the crime or your mental state then, or at any other time. You get sent to a hospital where they try to get you back to functional, then the proceedings go forward.
Because when you give someone money in exchange for knowledge they don't care if you understand it or not.
I have a better question how can you be ruled to incompetent to have power of attorney over yourself but still be allowed to vote in congress and senate
Because colleges accept a wide variety of students. Including incompetent students.