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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The Utah Supreme Court has ruled attorneys for news reporters may present an argument in court aimed at keeping open the competency hearing for Elizabeth Smart kidnapping suspect Brian David Mitchell.
The procedural ruling filed Monday doesn't address whether the competency hearing should be open, only that attorneys can press their case.
In April, 3rd District Judge Judith Atherton granted a stay until the Supreme Court could review a petition from Mitchell's attorneys claiming news media have no standing to object to a closed hearing.
Atherton earlier had ruled that news media organizations could argue for access.
Attorney Jeff Hunt, who represents The Associated Press and other news organizations, said Tuesday the Supreme Court has long held that reporters and news organizations can object to closing court hearings.
The high court ruling also means that media attorneys and Mitchell's attorneys will meet in a closed hearing in Atherton's chambers to hear evidence to support Mitchell's argument that the media should be banned from the competency hearing.
That meeting has not been scheduled yet, nor have any other hearings on the matter, said court spokeswoman Nancy Volmer.
Kimberly Clark, Mitchell's lead attorney, was not immediately available for comment.
In the Supreme Court petition, Mitchell's attorneys argued that Mitchell didn't consent to the competency evaluation and has refused to cooperate with experts assigned to the case.
Clark has said the evidence would expose prejudicial information about her client that would hurt Mitchell's chances for a fair trial if he were found mentally competent. He faces several first-degree felony charges arising from then-14-year-old Elizabeth's disappearance on June 5, 2002.
Media attorneys argued they need the evidence to prepare their arguments against closing the proceedings.
Mitchell, 50, and his wife, Wanda Barzee, 58, are charged with kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault, aggravated burglary and attempted aggravated kidnapping.
The couple, who say they had revelations from God, also have been charged in the attempted abduction of Elizabeth's cousin seven weeks after Elizabeth, now 16, was taken.
They allegedly kept Elizabeth as Mitchell's second wife for nine months in Utah and California. They were found March 12 in Sandy, a suburb about 15 miles south of Salt Lake City, nine months after the abduction.
In January, Barzee was declared incompetent to stand trial. Her first 90-day competency review, delayed because she couldn't immediately be transferred to Utah State Hospital's forensic wing for treatment and evaluation, is scheduled for June 28.
Two mental health evaluators assigned to Mitchell disagreed on whether he is competent to stand trial on the charges.
(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
