Criminal Practice – Constitutional – Due Process – Pretrial Detention – Competence – Involuntary Medication

Even though defendant has languished in pretrial detention for nearly six years while the government attempts to restore his competency to stand trial, since (1) the grave offenses – involving child sexual abuse material – with which defendant is charged carry maximum penalties ranging from 15 to 30 years of imprisonment (and two of which carry minimum sentences of 15 years of imprisonment), (2) our scrutiny of the record does not leave us with the firm conviction that the district court erred when it found that an involuntary medication order would significantly further the government’s interest in prosecuting defendant, and (3) the vast majority of the time in question elapsed while defendant pursued two rounds of appeals to this court, we conclude the district court committed no reversible error in deciding an involuntary medication order was warranted and finding it appropriate to grant one final four-month period of confinement to attempt to restore defendant’s competency.

Affirmed.

United States v. Tucker (Lawyers Weekly No. 001-031-23, 18 pp.) (Toby Heytens, J.) No. 20-4537. Appealed from USDC at Greensboro, N.C. (Thomas Schroeder, C.J.) Eric Brignac, Alan DuBois and Jaclyn Tarlton for appellant; Julie Carol Niemeier, Sandra Hairston and Eric Iverson for appellee. 4^th Cir.