Flaherty v. State

The defendant petitions for a writ of habeas corpus. He argues his appellate counsel provided ineffective assistance of counsel on direct appeal by failing to argue the trial court erred in not holding a competency hearing after having ordered a competency evaluation. We agree and grant the petition.

Prior to trial, defense counsel moved for a psychological examination stating that she had "reasonable grounds to believe that the Defendant is incompetent to proceed." The trial court granted the motion and set a hearing within twenty days as required by Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure…