Is a defendant competent to stand trial after a second competency hearing?

Appellate counsel for defendant contends that the trial court erred in denying trial counsel's request for a second competency hearing. The court did not err. "When a competency hearing has already been held and the defendant has been found competent to stand trial,... a trial court need not suspend proceedings to conduct a second competency hearing unless it 'is presented with a substantial change of circumstances or with new evidence' casting a serious doubt on the validity of that finding." (People v. Jones (1991) 53 Cal.3d 1115, 1153.)

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