<div id="subtitle">Utah judge denies motion to dismiss man's charges in Elizabeth Smart kidnapping case</div><div><p>A state court judge on Thursday denied a motion to dismiss kidnapping, sexual assault and other charges filed against the man accused in the 2002 abduction of Elizabeth Smart.</p><p>Attorneys for Brian David Mitchell argued that his mental incompetence makes a trial unlikely and that allowing the charges to hang over Mitchell's head violates the Utah constitution's "unnecessary rigors" clause.</p><p>The clause protects those arrested or incarcerated from conditions that are needlessly harsh, degrading or dehumanizing.</p><p>The indefinite threat of criminal charges also causes Mitchell great anxiety, the defense said.</p><p>"He is not being inhumanely treated, he is not being beaten, he is not being starved, things like that, but as to him, this is rigorous," defense attorney Patrick Corum said.</p><p>Third District Court Judge Judith Atherton agreed with prosecutors who argued that Mitchell's incarceration at the state mental hospital after his 2003 arrest has been far better than being in a jail or state prison.</p><p>"I think the treatment of Mr. Mitchell is very far from being able to meet the criteria of rigor," Atherton said. "I don't find any basis really for dismissing this case at this time."</p><p>Smart was 14 when she was taken from her Salt Lake City bedroom in June 2002. She was found about nine months later walking with Mitchell and his estranged wife, Wanda Eileen Barzee.</p><p>Mitchell, 54, suffers from a rare delusional disorder and has twice been found incompetent for trial. Last year, Atherton refused to order forced medications.</p><p>Mitchell was in a courthouse holding cell Thursday, but did not attend the hearing. He has a history of continuously singing religious hymns and disrupting court hearings.</p><p>"I've seen him so many times that I suspect his behavior would not change," Atherton said at the hearing.</p><p>Corum said Mitchell dislikes being called "incompetent" or "crazy."</p><p>"For someone with his delusions, there's nothing worse that you can say to him," Corum said.</p><p>Corum argued that prosecutors have less rigorous options, specifically civil commitment, to keep Mitchell out of the community. He said prosecutors could refile charges against Mitchell were he ever restored to competency.</p><p>Smart's father, Ed Smart, said he was pleased with the ruling and that he believed "all of the options need to be left open" in the case.</p><p>The state's case effectively stalled after Atherton refused to force medication for Mitchell, and federal prosecutors are now attempting to prosecute him. He was indicted on charges of kidnapping and unlawful transpiration of a minor a year ago and is slated for a competency hearing before a federal judge later this year.</p><p>Barzee has also been deemed incompetent for trial and is in the state mental hospital. Atherton ordered forced medication for Barzee last year, a process that began in May.</p><p>Now an adult, Elizabeth Smart is in her third year at Brigham Young University, where she is studying music. She is currently in London for a study abroad program, her father said.</p><p>"She is doing great and loving life," he said.</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=44246600&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

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