In re Geoffrey G.

Syllabus

The respondent mother appealed from the judgment of the trial court termi- nating her parental rights with respect to her minor child, G. The mother claimed for the first time on appeal that the trial court violated her due process rights by failing to order, sua sponte, an evaluation of her competency to assist her counsel at trial. Held that the respondent mother could not establish a violation of her right to due process: although the mother claimed that certain evidence demonstrated that her mental health issues interfered with her ability to provide her counsel at trial with truthful, relevant data in the presentation of her case and, although it was undisputed that the mother had severe mental health issues, the court did not abuse its discretion in declining to order a competency evaluation; rather, the record, which included the court's two canvasses of the mother, the mother's testimony, and the mother's frequent interjections during trial, permitted the court to conclude that the mother exhibited the ability to assist her counsel with a rational understanding of the proceedings against her; the court's first canvass of the mother, undertaken to determine whether she had waived her right to confidentiality prior to the testimony of her treating psychiatrist, J, revealed that she understood her right to confidentiality, desired to waive that right, appreciated the centrality of J's testimony to her defense to the allegation that she had failed to rehabilitate, and made a rational decision to waive her right to confidentiality with J in exchange for his testimony; the court's second canvass, conducted before the mother's testimony, revealed that she discussed her decision to testify with her counsel to her satisfaction, understood that she had a right not to testify, voluntarily chose to testify and be subjected to cross-examination, and had explicitly stated that she needed to defend herself; moreover, during the mother's testimony, she indicated that she ha