Amanda Bynes 'Mentally Unfit' to Stand Trial, Lawyer Argues
Amanda Bynes was due in court yesterday, Sept. 24, but did not appear as she is still in-residence at a psychiatric hospital. Her lawyer told the judge that Bynes is mentally unfit to stand trial in the DUI case from April 2012.
"Her attorney declared a 1368 PC [Penal Code] hearing to declare a doubt to mental capacity," a Los Angeles County District Attorney's office spokesman told Us Weekly. "The parties will be due back in court on January 14, 2014 for a progress report."
For now, Bynes' mother, Lynn, will remain her conservator and have full legal control over Bynes' assets and health. A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 27 to determine whether Lynn's conservatorship will be made permanent. A judge granted her temporary conservatorship after Bynes was admitted to a psychiatric facility on a 5150 involuntary hold.
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Bynes' behavior led authorities to take her into custody after witnesses called them to report that Bynes had started a fire in a stranger's driveway and was found holding her dog, which was doused in gasoline. She has been receiving treatment at UCLA Medical Center, the same facility that initially treated Paris Jackson after her alleged suicide attempt.
Bynes was arrested in April 2012 for DUI in West Hollywood; it was one of several incidents involving reckless driving. The previous month she was stopped and cited for talking on a cell phone while driving and the following month she was charged for two hit-and-run incidents. Those charges were dismissed, but the DUI stood. Her license was suspended in September 2012, but she continued to drive, so police impounded the vehicle.
In May 2013, Bynes was arrested for possession of marijuana, attempting to tamper with evidence and reckless endangerment after reportedly throwing a bong out of her apartment window in order to avoid arrest. She was given a mental evaluation but released. Just two months later, she was again taken into custody, but this time held on a 5150 mental health evaluation, which led to her hospitalization.
