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A Kearns woman facing an attempted murder charge for allegedly tossing her newborn daughter in a trash can last summer has been found incompetent to stand trial, a judge said Monday.
The determination is based on the findings of two mental health experts who evaluated Alicia Englert, said 3rd District Judge Elizabeth Hruby-Mills.
The judge did not provide details of the competency reports in court, however, Jessica Peterson, an attorney for Englert's parents — who have seen the documents — said the experts found Englert incompetent because she has an IQ of 51.
An IQ below 70 is generally considered the threshold for determining mental retardation under the law.
"[Englert's] parents are very relieved that the medical professionals found exactly what they've been asserting all along," Peterson said after Monday's hearing. "Alicia just simply functions at a lower level than you and I would."
Peterson said the findings "vindicate" Englert's parents, who have long said their daughter is developmentally disabled.
Peterson said she hopes prosecutors will move to dismiss the case.
But Deputy Salt Lake County District Attorney Robert Parrish told The Tribune: "It's not just about IQ. There's a lot more to it than just that."
Parrish said he could not elaborate because the competency evaluations are confidential.
He did say, however, that there will be findings of fact signed by the judge, likely by the end of the week, that will place Englert in the care of the executive director of the state Department of Human Services, who will decide how to go about attempting to restore her competency. That often means sending a defendant to the Utah State Hospital in Provo.
Englert's defense attorneys, Melissa Fulkerson and Jose Brumfield, did not immediately return a telephone message seeking comment. A competency review hearing is set for June 8. Englert, 23, has been charged with one count of first-degree felony attempted murder for allegedly leaving her infant child in a trash bin to die after secretly delivering the child in the bathroom of her parents' home.
In court papers, prosecutors say the 2-day-old girl was found Aug. 26, unclothed and buried under two bags of garbage by the neighbor, who heard the infant cry. Englert told police she didn't know she was pregnant until she gave birth and did not want the child, the documents state.
The infant was placed in state custody.
Englert remains free on $25,000 bail. As a condition of her release, Englert is barred from any unsupervised contact with children.
Because the court process is stalled by the finding of incompetency, it's unclear whether Englert will ever enter a plea to the charges or stand trial. If she were convicted of an attempted murder charge, Englert could spend the rest of her life in prison.
Englert's parents hope their daughter will not have to stand trial, Peterson said.
"They are hopeful that the state will do what's right in the interests of justice and dismiss the case," Peterson said. "Alicia simply did not understand the gravity of her actions."
Defense attorneys first raised questions about Englert's mental competency in October and asked the court for an evaluation to determine whether she suffers from a disorder or condition that would prevent her from understanding the court process, the charges filed against her, the possible punishment for the crime, or prevent her from participating in her own defense.
Unified Police Department officials have said the agency's investigators found no medical evidence that Englert, who worked at a car rental agency and graduated from high school, was mentally incompetent.