The bill amends Section 23A-10A-14 of South Dakota law regarding the civil commitment process for defendants found mentally incompetent. It specifies that after four months of evaluation, if the facility has not certified the defendant as competent, the director must issue a report to the circuit court assessing the likelihood of the defendant becoming competent within the next year. The court is then required to hold a hearing to determine this probability and must order appropriate actions, such as placement in a restoration to competency program, based on the findings.

Additionally, the bill clarifies that if the one-year period elapses without a certificate of recovery, the director must notify the court, which must then conduct a hearing to reassess the defendant's condition. If the court finds no substantial probability of the defendant becoming competent in the foreseeable future, it must dismiss the charges. However, if any charges were felonies, the prosecutor must then initiate civil commitment proceedings. The amendments replace the word "shall" with "must" in several instances to emphasize the mandatory nature of these actions.

Statutes affected:
Introduced, 01/15/2025: 23A-10A-14