WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1997

Style: Sanchez-Velasco v. State, No. 89,511

Facts: Sanchez-Velasco was convicted of first-degree murder and other crimes and wassentenced to death. On appeal, his convictions and sentence were affirmed. After amotion to vacate under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 had been filed,Sanchez-Velasco asked the court to allow him to discharge the attorneys representinghim and withdraw his 3.850 motion. The court ordered a competency evaluation andconducted a colloquy with Sanchez-Velasco. The court determined thatSanchez-Velasco was competent and understood what he was doing. The court grantedSanchez-Velasco's requests.
Claims: On appeal, attorneys appearing on Sanchez-Velasco's behalf argue (1) that theevaluation of competency was defective; and (2) that there should have been anevidentiary hearing into the adequacy of the expert's competency report.