Committee hears bill to start competency-restoration clock when defendants enter treatment

The Michigan House Judiciary Committee heard testimony on House Bill 4596, a technical change to the state mental health code that would make the 15‑month competency‑restoration period begin when a defendant is admitted to a state treatment center rather than when a court enters an order finding the defendant incompetent.

Prosecutors say the change is intended to avoid dismissing serious cases before a defendant has had a real chance at treatment. "Competency pertains to a defendant's ability to assist in his defense and understand the criminal justice system," Branch County Prosecutor Zachary Stempian told the committee. He said the current timing can force dismissal when long delays at the forensic center mean defendants do not start treatment until many months after the court order.

Stempian described a pending case in his district involving attempted murder and stalking that highlighted the problem: after a court ordered restoration, the forensic center told local officials the defendant "will not be admitted until at least the 360th day of his incarceration," leaving only months under the existing 15‑month rule before prosecutors would have to dismiss the case. Stempian said, if dismissed under current law, many felony charges other than capital offenses could not be refiled, leaving victims without restitution, sex‑offender registration where applicable, or a felony conviction that would later bar firearm possession.

Sheriff Fred Blankenship, who previously served as a jail administrator, also spoke in support and described long waits for beds at the forensic center: "The jails have become the de facto mental health hospitals in Michigan," he said, adding that some inmates have waited "up to over a year" for admission.

Committee members asked about average wait times and alternatives such as private providers. Stempian said timelines vary, with many admissions taking six to nine months and some lasting longer. He told members the statute currently aggregates intermittent periods of competency and incompetency into the 15‑month total, and the bill would instead start counting from the date treatment actually begins. He and other witnesses said judges and local court officials they consulted shared concerns about the current process.

No committee vote on House Bill 4596 was recorded during the hearing.

The bill was presented as a targeted change to the state's mental health code; witnesses emphasized the change would not alter criminal‑responsibility standards but would give forensic centers more practical time to restore competency and prosecutors more certainty about whether a case can be pursued.