Mississippi Supreme Court Orders Judge to Write His Own Findings

The Mississippi Supreme Court order in Chase v. Mississippi is available in Adobe .pdf format.

"Mississippi court asks judge to resubmit Chase findings," is the AP report filed by Jack Elliott Jr.  it's via the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal.

The Mississippi Supreme Court has asked a Copiah County judge to clarify his ruling that death row inmate Ricky Chase is mentally competent.

The justices say it appears the trial judge adopted findings submitted by prosecutors. The justices say they want the judge to put the findings into his own words.

And:

In 2010, Circuit Judge Lamar Pickard in Copiah County ruled against Chase's claims of mental disability

In an order issued Jan. 17, Supreme Court Presiding Justice Jess Dickinson said Pickard must resubmit his findings to the Supreme Court and provide reasons why he denied Chase's petition.

Dickinson said the Supreme Court also wanted to make sure that mental health experts were allowed to render opinions to the trial court on testing done on Chase by other doctors such as those at the Mississippi State Hospital in Whitfield.