By Tim Steller
Arizona Daily Star
TUCSON, Ariz. — Whether an inmate is awaiting trial or has been convicted of a crime, prison officials still have the right to medicate them to reduce their dangerousness, federal prosecutors argued in a brief Wednesday in the Tucson shooting spree case.
The 67-page brief to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals answers a defense argument filed for Jared Lee Loughner July 27. In that filing, Loughner’s attorneys said prison officials must get a court order before forcing him to take anti-psychotic drugs that could also render him competent to stand trial.
Prosecutors cited a brief filed in the case by the American Psychiatric Association saying that sedatives do not offer a good alternative to antipsychotics for schizophrenia, as defense attorneys have suggested.
Full Story: It’s OK to medicate inmates for safety’s sake, court told