In what court case did an appellate court hold that a young child whose developmental immaturity may result in trial incompetence despite the absence of any underlying mental or development abnormality, thus overruling prior case law that held that children must have either a mental disorder or a developmental disability to be deemed incompetent to stand trial?

Question

Social Studies

Brooklyn Buck

14 March, 06:43

In what court case did an appellate court hold that a young child whose developmental immaturity may result in trial incompetence despite the absence of any underlying mental or development abnormality, thus overruling prior case law that held that children must have either a mental disorder or a developmental disability to be deemed incompetent to stand trial?

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Answers (1)

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Natalee Bernard · Answer 1

TImothy v. Supreme Court

Explanation:

The case revolved around Timothy w, a very smart kid with that is born with a defect in his cerebral palsy, along with cortical blindness. This make him unable to excel and normal trial like any other kids. Even if he is compared to other kids in disabilities class (it is extremely difficult for Timothy to understand visual cues that used by the teachers to teach the materials).

In the end, the board decided to let go of Timothy and deemed him as unfit for education. Timothy's parents brought this case to the court and sue the board, alleging that the board has violated the 14th amendment, especialy under the equal protection clause.

In the end, Timothy and his parents won the case. This led to the creation of Education for All Handicapped Children Act, which prohibit all educational institution to refuse giving education to handicapped children, no matter how severe their condition might be