Brian David Mitchell's defense team wants allegations of prior child sex abuse excluded from Mitchell's current federal competency hearing.
Attorneys for the man accused of kidnapping and raping Elizabeth Smart filed their motion under seal Monday but it was unsealed Thursday. In it, the attorneys asked U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball to exclude any allegations of past abuse by Mitchell and redact all allegations not related to the Smart case from expert reports, saying the accusations are unproven and have "little or no relevance" in determining his competency.
Furthermore, bringing up the allegations "would only serve to taint the public's and potential jurors' already jaundiced opinion of Mr. Mitchell," the defense argued in court documents. "Previous experience in this case has shown that the media will highlight the more salacious allegations of child sexual abuse should this court air such testimony publicly."
Mitchell is accused of kidnapping and raping Smart in 2002 when she was just 14. In October, Smart opened the competency hearing by taking the witness stand herself, delivering graphic testimony of the abuse she suffered. She also testified that Mitchell told her he was once accused of molesting a child.
Prosecutors argue the information of prior sex-abuse allegations is already publicly known.
In its response, the U.S. Attorney's Office said aside from the fact the majority of their witnesses have already taken the witness stand, the motion should be denied "because evidence of prior sexual abuse is relevant to the competency determination, and there is no justification for closing the hearing or redacting the expert reports, particularly where this information is already in the public record."
Showing evidence to support that Mitchell is a pedophile is relevant because it supports the idea that not only did he use religion as a way to get sex, but his preoccupation with sex trumped all his religious thinking, prosecutors say.
The government's key expert witness, scheduled to begin his testimony Friday, mentions Mitchell's child sex abuse history in his report. But because the report of Dr. Michael Welner "more than adequately explains his position," the defense argued there was no reason to bring it up in open court.
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