Font ResizeA lawyer for Brian David Mitchell asked a judge on Monday to exclude testimony by two religion experts from a hearing on whether the self-proclaimed prophet is mentally competent to stand trial in the abduction of Elizabeth Smart.
Mitchell's attorneys object to testimony by Richard Forbes, a retired police officer who has studied cults and taught a class on the subject at Salt Lake Community College, and Daniel Peterson, a professor of Islamic studies and Arabic at Brigham Young University. The two will testify that psychologists who found Mitchell incompetent "seriously misjudged and misunderstood the content and the context of the Defendant's religious thinking and writing," according to court records.
Defense lawyer Audrey James argued to U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball that mental illness cannot be diagnosed by looking at the contents of religious beliefs. She also said Forbes and Peterson are not qualified to testify whether Mitchell shows signs of mental illness or delusion in his writings.
But prosecutor Richard Lambert said testimony by the two will show that while Mitchell's belief system "is certainly grandiose, it's not 'out there.' "
He said if the self-proclaimed prophet were delusional, it would come out in his writings. But the "Book of Immanuel David Isaiah," a 27-page religious manifesto by Mitchell, is well-written and coherent, said Lambert, an assistant U.S. attorney.
Also on Monday, the defense asked Kimball
Defense attorneys contend that Welner's methodology was faulty and that lay witnesses should not be allowed to give opinions about Mitchell's state of mind. The prosecution has said hospital workers, former neighbors and relatives have seen Mitchell in unguarded moments and can provide valuable information.
And Assistant U.S. Attorney Diana Hagen told Kimball that Welner used the same methods as other mental-health experts who examined Mitchell and did a thorough and professional job.
The judge took the arguments under consideration. The two-week competency hearing is slated to start Nov. 30.
Mitchell is charged with abducting Smart in 2002 and taking her to California with the intent to have sex. Court documents say that Welner and another psychiatrist believe Mitchell is mentally competent, while three psychologists believe he is incompetent.
Brian David Mitchell, 55, and his wife, Wanda Eileen Barzee, 63, are accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart on June 5, 2002, from her Federal Heights home. They were arrested in March 2003 while walking in Sandy with the girl.
A judge in the state's 3rd District Court has ruled Mitchell cannot be forcibly medicated to try to restore his mental competency; the same judge ruled Barzee could be forcibly medicated, a process that began at the Utah State Hospital in May 2008.
The state court ruling led the U.S. Attorney's Office to begin a case against the couple. A federal grand jury issued an indictment last year charging Mitchell and Barzee with kidnapping and coercion of a minor with intent to engage in sexual activity.
