People v. Branch

We granted the People’s petition for certiorari to review the decision of the court of appeals in People v. Branch, 786 P.2d 441 (Colo.App.1989), which reversed the conviction of the defendant, Michael Branch, for second-degree murder and remanded the case to the trial court for a new trial. In reaching this result, the court of appeals held that the trial court erred in ruling that the defendant’s statements to a court-appointed psychiatrist during a competency examination were voluntary and hence were admissible to impeach the defendant’s testimony at trial. In contrast to the trial court’s…