Nev. Rev. Stat. » NRS: CHAPTER 178 - GENERAL PROVISIONS
Nevada Revised Statutes

Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400 (2026)

Incompetent person cannot be tried or adjudged to punishment for public offense

✓ current as of July 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section NRSleg.state.nv.us (official) Justiaon Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar
NRS 178.400  Incompetent person cannot be tried or adjudged to punishment for public offense.

      1.  A person may not be tried or adjudged to punishment for a public offense while incompetent.

      2.  For the purposes of this section, “incompetent” means that the person does not have the present ability to:

      (a) Understand the nature of the criminal charges against the person;

      (b) Understand the nature and purpose of the court proceedings; or

      (c) Aid and assist the person’s counsel in the defense at any time during the proceedings with a reasonable degree of rational understanding.

      [1911 Cr. Prac. § 535; RL § 7385; NCL § 11183]—(NRS A 1981, 1656; 1995, 2458; 2007, 185)

     

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 54 cases (14 in the last 5 years), 1964–2025 · leading case: Riggins v. Nevada, 504 U.S. 127 (1992).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Riggins v. Nevada, 504 U.S. 127 (1992). · cites it 4× “In response, the State noted that Nevada law prohibits the trial of incompetent persons, see Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400 (1989), and argued that the court therefore had authority to compel Riggins to take medication necessary to ensure his competence.”
Calvin v. State, 147 P.3d 1097 (Nev. 2006). · cites it 8× “*1180 OPINION Per Curiam: In this opinion, we consider whether NRS 178.400, Nevada’s standard for a defendant’s competency to stand trial, conforms to the standard set out by the United States Supreme Court in Dusky v.”
Scarbo v. Eighth Jud. Dist. Court, 206 P.3d 975 (Nev. 2009). · cites it 3× “1142, 1147 , 195 P3d 864, 868 (2008); see NRS 178.400; see also U.S. Const. amend. XIV.”
Goad v. State, 488 P.3d 646 (Nev. 2021). · cites it 10× “The court's questions did not specifically address the factors for determining incompetence set forth in NRS 178.400(2).1 Court staff informed the court 1See NRS 178.”
Naovarath v. State, 779 P.2d 944 (Nev. 1989). · cites it 2× “NRS 178.400. The record indicates that Naovarath possesses "superior intelligence.”
Dickson v. Second Jud. Dist. Court, 592 P.2d 166 (Nev. 1979). · cites it 3× “They concede that while such a procedure would be permissible if the defendant were an adult, NRS 178.400, the statutes do not apply to children, NRS 169.”
Colwell v. State, 59 P.3d 463 (Nev. 2002). “14 NRS 178.400(2); see also Dusky v. United States, 362 U.”
Olivares v. State, 195 P.3d 864 (Nev. 2008). · cites it 2× “" [8] An incompetent defendant is defined under NRS 178.400(2)(a) as one who does not have the present ability to understand either the nature of the criminal charges against him or the nature and purpose of the court proceedings, or is not able to aid and assist his counsel in…”
Lipsitz v. State, 442 P.3d 138 (Nev. 2019). “; see also NRS 178.400(2)(a)-(c). "[I]f doubt arises as to the competence of the defendant, the court shall suspend the proceedings .”
Matter of Two Minor Child., 592 P.2d 166 (Nev. 1979). · cites it 3× “They concede that while such a procedure would be permissible if the defendant were an adult, NRS 178.400, the statutes do not apply to children, NRS 169.”
Tanksley v. State, 944 P.2d 240 (Nev. 1997). · cites it 2× “2d 1179, 1182 (1991); see NRS 178.400. "When there is conflicting psychiatric testimony at a competency hearing, the trier of fact resolves the conflicting testimony of the witnesses.”
Ford v. Warden, 901 P.2d 123 (Nev. 1995). “NRS 178.400(2) provides: “incompetenc[y]” means that the person is not of sufficient mentality to be able to understand the nature of the criminal charges against him, *883 and because of that insufficiency, is not able to aid and assist his counsel in the defense interposed…”
Show all 54 citing cases →
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400(1) — 9 cases
Woerner v. Just. Court, 1 P.3d 377 (Nev. 2000).
Price (anthony) v. Dist. Ct. (state), 567 P.3d 319 (Nev. 2025).
State v. Desavio (matthew), 141 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 25 (Nev. 2025).
Watson v. State, 2014 NV 76 (Nev. 2014).
Mulder (Michael) v. State (Death Penalty-Pc) (Nev. 2018).
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400(2) — 19 cases
Goad v. State, 488 P.3d 646 (Nev. 2021). “The court's questions did not specifically address the factors for determining incompetence set forth in NRS 178.400(2).1 Court staff informed the court 1See NRS 178.”
Colwell v. State, 59 P.3d 463 (Nev. 2002). “14 NRS 178.400(2); see also Dusky v. United States, 362 U.”
Calvin v. State, 147 P.3d 1097 (Nev. 2006). “*1180 OPINION Per Curiam: In this opinion, we consider whether NRS 178.400, Nevada’s standard for a defendant’s competency to stand trial, conforms to the standard set out by the United States Supreme Court in Dusky v.”
Ford v. Warden, 901 P.2d 123 (Nev. 1995). “NRS 178.400(2) provides: “incompetenc[y]” means that the person is not of sufficient mentality to be able to understand the nature of the criminal charges against him, *883 and because of that insufficiency, is not able to aid and assist his counsel in the defense interposed…”
Hill v. State, 953 P.2d 1077 (Nev. 1998).
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400(2)(a) — 9 cases
Olivares v. State, 195 P.3d 864 (Nev. 2008). “" [8] An incompetent defendant is defined under NRS 178.400(2)(a) as one who does not have the present ability to understand either the nature of the criminal charges against him or the nature and purpose of the court proceedings, or is not able to aid and assist his counsel in…”
Lipsitz v. State, 442 P.3d 138 (Nev. 2019). “; see also NRS 178.400(2)(a)-(c). "[I]f doubt arises as to the competence of the defendant, the court shall suspend the proceedings .”
Scarbo v. Eighth Jud. Dist. Court, 206 P.3d 975 (Nev. 2009). “1142, 1147 , 195 P3d 864, 868 (2008); see NRS 178.400; see also U.S. Const. amend. XIV.”
Goad v. State, 488 P.3d 646 (Nev. 2021). “The court's questions did not specifically address the factors for determining incompetence set forth in NRS 178.400(2).1 Court staff informed the court 1See NRS 178.”
Goad (ralph) Vs. State, 2021 NV 17 (Nev. 2021).
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400(2)(b) — 2 cases
Price (anthony) v. Dist. Ct. (state), 567 P.3d 319 (Nev. 2025).
In re D.C., Jr., 140 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 25 (Nev. 2024).
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 178.400(2)(c) — 2 cases
Price (anthony) v. Dist. Ct. (state), 567 P.3d 319 (Nev. 2025).
In re D.C., Jr., 140 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 25 (Nev. 2024).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.