The People v. Bortnyak

Defendant, Joseph Bortnyak, then 27 years of age, was convicted of murder on August 27, 1947, by a jury in the circuit court of Cook County and sentenced to life imprisonment. He now seeks to have the judgment vacated and the cause remanded for a hearing to determine his competence to stand trial.

On August 11, 1947, one week after indictment, the then Public Defender of Cook County, who had been appointed to represent defendant, moved for the appointment of three psychiatrists to examine the defendant. The motion recited that the public defender had interviewed defendant and believed him to…