State v. Bishop

HAYS, Justice.

Appellant Curtis Bishop was indicted for the November 14, 1980 murder of Cheryl McMahon, an employee at “VisionQuest,” a residential treatment center for troubled youths. Appellant pled guilty to a first-degree murder charge in return for the state’s promise not to seek the death penalty. The trial court sentenced appellant to life imprisonment.

Three issues confront us: whether the trial court properly found appellant voluntarily absent from three sessions of a competency hearing accorded him pursuant to Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure, rule 11; whether appellant was…