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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) The man charged in the kidnapping of Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart is mentally incapable of standing trial, a judge determined Tuesday. The decision by 3rd District Judge Judith Atherton will send Brian David Mitchell to a state hospital until he's deemed able to withstand the rigors of trial. Atherton issued her 60-page decision after six days of hearings over the past seven months. It covered the sweep of Mitchell's life in a family that testimony showed had a history of mental disorder. Mitchell was the third of six children and a "loner" in a "highly dysfunctional" family, the judge wrote.
Mitchell, 51, is accused of kidnapping then 14-year-old Elizabeth from her bedroom in 2002, sexually assaulting her and keeping her as his second wife. Mitchell and wife Wanda Barzee, 59, were charged with kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault, aggravated burglary and attempted aggravated kidnapping. He also is charged in the attempted abduction of Elizabeth's cousin. |