{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-202c.030","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 202C.030","heading":"Evidentiary hearing, purposes and conduct of -- When subsequent","body":"commitment hearing is required -- Evidence submitted by respondent\ninadmissible in other criminal or civil cases.  (Effective until October 1, 2026)\n(1) An adversarial evidentiary h earing on the record shall be held within twenty (20)\ndays, excluding weekends and holidays, of the filing of a petition pursuant to KRS\n202C.020. Appropriate notice shall be served on all parties. The court shall order\nthe Commonwealth to provide all avai lable discovery to the respondent no later\nthan seven (7) days, excluding weekends and holidays, before the hearing. No\nevidence may be presented at the hearing that has not been disclosed through\ndiscovery.\n(2) The respondent may stipulate to potential gu ilt and waive the hearing. A stipulation\nof potential guilt cannot be used against the respondent in any future criminal\nprosecution or civil litigation.\n(3) The purpose of the evidentiary hearing shall be to determine whether sufficient\nevidence exists to  support a finding that the respondent is guilty of the charged\ncrime against him or her. The Commonwealth's attorney's office serving the county\nof criminal prosecution shall have the burden of proving the sufficiency of the\nevidence by a preponderance of the evidence.\n(4) The evidentiary hearing shall be held before a judge without a jury. The rules of\nevidence shall apply. The respondent shall be permitted to present evidence and\ncross examine witnesses. The respondent may present evidence of affirmative\ndefenses that could be raised at a criminal trial on the charged crime. The\nCommonwealth shall not have the burden of disproving an affirmative defense. The\nrespondent must prove an affirmative defense by a preponderance of the evidence.\n(5) (a) If the court determines that sufficient evidence has been presented to support a\nfinding that the respondent is guilty of the charged crime against him or her,\nthe court shall immediately schedule a commitment hearing under this chapter\nwithin twenty (20) days, excluding weekends and holidays.\n(b) The court shall cause the respondent to be examined without unnecessary\ndelay by two (2) qualified mental health professionals, at least one (1) of\nwhom is a physician. The qualified mental health professionals shall, with in\nseven (7) days, excluding weekends and holidays, prior to the hearing, certify\nto the court their findings as to whether the respondent meets the criteria for\ninvoluntarily commitment under KRS 202C.050.\n(6) If the court determines that insufficient evi dence has been presented to support a\nfinding that the respondent is guilty of the charged crime against him or her, the\ncourt shall order the immediate release of the respondent.\n(7) No evidence or statement submitted by the respondent at the evidentiary hearing\nshall be admissible in any criminal prosecution or civil litigation.\nEffective: April 1, 2021","path":["KRS Chapter 202C"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=50867","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:52:00Z","sha256":"3f321827acc2ee2de91688208f454299194418682d45c0e2d681a7f5af819caa","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-202c.020","next":"us-ky/krs-202c.040"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}