Court: Don't forcibly medicate Loughner

PHOENIX, July 13 (UPI) -- A federal appeals court upheld its stay against forcibly medicating Jared Loughner, the man accused of killing and wounding 19 people in Tucson in January.

In its ruling Tuesday, the appeals court ordered the prosecution and the defense to prepare for a hearing on the matter at the end of August, The Arizona Republic reported Wednesday.

After the January shootings, in which six people died and 13, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, were wounded, Loughner was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic and incarcerated at a federal facility in Springfield, Mo., for psychiatric restoration.

At issue are two U.S. Supreme Court rulings that specify when prisoners can be forcibly medicated for psychiatric reasons, the Republic said. One ruling requires an administrative hearing if the inmate poses a danger to himself and others; the other calls for a court hearing if the inmate is being forcibly medicated to be restored to competency to stand trial.

In June, a federal judge ruled prison officials could force Loughner to take medication, turning aside a defense argument that officials were avoiding legal precedent by forcing him to take medications without a court hearing.

The defense appealed and a federal appeals court issued a stay against forcibly medicating Loughner, then upheld its decision Tuesday.

The ruling narrowly applies to whether the preliminary injunction remains in place, the Republic said. The two sides will argue which type of hearing Loughner must undergo.

One Supreme Court case allows for an administrative hearing pertained to a prison inmate who already had been convicted. The case that required a court hearing concerned a "pretrial detainee," such as Loughner.

"Because Loughner had not been convicted of a crime, he is presumptively innocent and therefore entitled to greater constitutional protections than a convicted inmate," Tuesday's ruling said.