People v. Watson

Appellate Court of Illinois, Third District · 2024 · Criminal Law

Criminal LawInsanity defenseAttorney-client privilegeExpert discoveryinsanity defensesanity evaluationfitness evaluationattorney-client privilege

Facts

Defendant was charged with first degree murder and later pursued an insanity defense. For sanity purposes, the court appointed Dr. Anna Stapleton through the county at defendant’s request, and the public defender also retained Dr. Monica Argumedo; defense counsel later stated that neither expert had initially reached an opinion and sought a continuance for a third expert. When Stapleton completed a sanity report, defense counsel objected to disclosure and said defendant would not call her, but the trial court ordered the report disclosed and allowed the State to use Stapleton as a rebuttal witness. At trial, Argumedo testified for the defense, Stapleton testified for the State that defendant was not insane at the time of the offense, and the jury returned a guilty-but-mentally-ill verdict.

Issue

When a defendant raises an insanity defense, may the State obtain and use the sanity report and testimony of a mental-health expert who was engaged on defendant’s behalf but whom defendant does not call at trial, where the expert’s opinion was based in part on communications and observations from the sanity interview and in part on prior fitness evaluations?

Rule

Communications between a defendant and a psychiatric expert engaged by the defense in preparation of an insanity defense are protected by attorney-client privilege so long as the expert does not testify and the expert’s notes and opinions are not used by other testifying defense experts. The privilege is waived only as to experts the defense identifies as witnesses or whose notes and reports are used by other defense experts who testify. A defendant’s assertion of an insanity defense does not itself waive privilege, and the State’s ability to use admissible fitness evaluations does not entitle it to the defense expert’s separate sanity opinion.

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One of 10 multiple-choice questions for this case. Pick an answer to see why.

In Peoria, defense counsel for Malik Turner retained Dr. Elena Ruiz, a psychologist, to evaluate whether Malik was legally insane when a warehouse fire occurred. Dr. Ruiz interviewed Malik, prepared a report concluding he was not insane, and the defense decided not to call her or share her report with any other defense witness.

If Malik gives notice of an insanity defense, may the prosecution compel disclosure of Dr. Ruiz's report and call her as a rebuttal witness solely because insanity is at issue?

Explanation. The majority rule is that communications with a psychiatric expert engaged by the defense to prepare an insanity defense are protected by attorney-client privilege. Merely asserting insanity does not waive that privilege. Waiver occurs only if the defense identifies the expert as a witness or uses that expert's notes or opinions through another defense expert who testifies. Because Dr. Ruiz was retained for the defense, did not testify, and her materials were not used by another defense witness, the State cannot compel the report or call her. (Derived from People v. Watson (n.d.).)