Vuthy Seng v. Commonwealth

At issue in this case is whether a criminal defendant may be required to submit to an examination by an expert of the Commonwealth’s choosing to evaluate his competency to stand trial. After a court-appointed expert concluded that Vuthy Seng (defendant) was not competent to stand trial, a judge in the Superior Court allowed the Commonwealth’s motion that the defendant submit to a second competency examination to be conducted by an expert of its choosing, “subject,” she ruled, “to the procedures set forth in *537Mass. R. Crim. P. 14 (b) (2) (B),” 378 Mass. 874 (1979).1 The defendant petitioned a…