The rapid growth of online technology has been accompanied by a rise in cases of cyberstalking and other electronic threats. A recent case in Arizona highlights how people with mental health issues can incriminate themselves online. It also illustrated how Rule 11 works in Arizona when defendants are mentally incompetent.
A woman from Paradise Valley is fighting charges over stalking and criminal trespassing. She is accused of sending more than 159,000 text messages to a man who she went out on a single date with.
Police claim Jacqueline Ades sent a man more than 159,000 text messages after she met him on a dating site. Investigators said some of the messages sent over a 10-month period were threatening.
Prosecutors said Ades started threatening her former date after Paradise Valley officers escorted her from the man’s property in July 2017. Texts appeared to threaten mutilation, and cannibalism according to police.
Ades has being held in Maricopa County’s Estrella Jail without bond since May 2018. Her case attracted national media attention.
A report in AZCentral noted how her attorney requested a Rule 11 competency hearing. The request for the hearing in January followed concerns that Ades did not understand the charges and the proceedings against her and was unable to assist in her own defense.
Ades was deemed mentally incompetent at a Rule 11 hearing in March. According to report, she rejected a plea deal that would have released her from jail because she had already served the required time. She insists on pleading not guilty.
Media reports stated two of the three mental-health professionals found the defendant mentally incompetent to stand trial, but restorable. One thought she was mentally competent. The trial was delayed for at least two months.
Ades said in an interview the whole episode was a joke. The New York Post reported she claimed the jury would order her to marry the man she allegedly bombarded with text messages and she was previously abducted by Walt Disney.
Police said they arrested Ades when she took a bath in the man’s home while he was out of the country.
The competency rule or Rule 11 is important. It protects people with mental illnesses who cannot understand the proceedings they are facing and are not able to consult with a lawyer. Defendants with mental illnesses often make a recovery and are able to face charges when they are of sound mind.
At the Garcia Law Firm, our attorney has considerable experience in these cases. Please contact the firm at (602) 340-1999.
