Howard v. State

Appellant, William Howard, appeals his conviction of two counts of rape, Ind. Code § 35-13-4-8 (Burns 1975) and two counts of sodomy, Ind. Code § 35-1-89-1 (Burns 1975), 1 Appellant raises two issues on appeal: (1) whether the trial court erred in ruling that appellant was mentally competent to stand trial; and (2) whether the trial court permitted improper prejudicial testimony to be given during cross-examination of a defense witness.

I

Appellant filed a “motion for commitment before trial” suggesting his incompetency to stand trial. The trial court appointed two psychiatrists to examine…