Hearing Expected on Competency of Woman in Elizabeth Smart Case
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Utah State Hospital officials plan to update a state judge on the mental competency of the woman charged in the 2002 kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart.
Wanda Eileen Barzee was expected in a Salt Lake City court for a hearing on Friday. Barzee has been receiving court-ordered psychiatric treatment since May 2008 in an effort to restore her competency.
The 63-year-old was twice deemed incompetent to stand trial.
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Barzee and her estranged husband, Brian David Mitchell, were arrested in March 2003 and charged with multiple felonies related to the June 2002 kidnapping of then-14-year-old Smart in Salt Lake City.
If state hospital officials believe Barzee now meets the legal standard for competency, the case could be headed for a trial.