1 week Ago By Michael Karlik [email protected]
Colorado's second-highest court decided last week that a defendant's "extreme religious beliefs" did not render her incompetent to proceed, nor did they invalidate her decision to represent herself at trial. A three-judge panel for the Court of Appeals did not believe Ika Eden had any mental health issues that interfered with her ability to understand her case, even as she spoke in incomprehensible terms throughout the proceedings — claiming, among other things, that she was 6.3 million years old and that the trial judge was "Adolph Hitler garbed in a female flesh.
" "Eden participated in the trial proceedings, and while her approach may have been unconventional, it is not within the purview of this court to hold that a defendant may not proceed pro se (as their own attorney) solely based on their defense strategy or lack of technical legal skill," wrote Judge Ted C. Tow III in the April 3 opinion. Decided: April 3, 2025 Jurisdiction: Mesa County & San Miguel County Ruling: 3-0 Judges: Ted C.
Tow III (author) Stephanie Dunn Daniel M. Taubman Background: Felony child abuse convictions overturned in high-profile case due to instruction error Mesa County jurors convicted Ika Eden in 2021 on two counts of child abuse resulting in death. Eden belonged to a group of itinerant adults and children living on the San Miguel County farm of Frederick "Alec" Blair.
In 2017, Hannah Marshall, 8, and Makayla Roberts, 10, were discovered dead and decomposing in a vehicle on Blair's farm. At some point, the victims were banished to live in the car with no food. A forensic examiner was unable to conclusively state the cause of death because of the condition of the girls' bodies, but evidence suggested long-term malnourishment near the end of their lives.
Jurors convicted multiple adults for the girls' deaths. Blair also received a 12-year prison sentence for his involvement. Eden's case, which was relocated to Mesa County for the trial, was on hold for multiple years while her competency to proceed was in question.
Originally, a medical professional evaluated Eden in mid-2018 and found her competent to proceed. Based on that, San Miguel County District Court Judge Keri A. Yoder granted Eden's request to represent herself.
Within months, the prosecution raised new doubts about Eden's competency. The original doctor who evaluated Eden changed her mind, now finding Eden to be delusional. Yoder reappointed an attorney and Eden received services at the Colorado Mental Health Hospital in Pueblo.
In early 2021, multiple medical professionals testified to their assessment of Eden's ability to proceed to trial. They reached differing conclusions about Eden's rationality and her understanding of the case. Yoder ultimately relied upon the findings of an experienced doctor who found Eden was likely not delusional, but rather held " overvalued ideas " — a " fanatic ," as some psychiatrists have labeled it.
Eden "does not suffer from a diagnosable delusional disorder, but, rather, that she holds extreme religious beliefs," Yoder said. Eden's "persistence in applying her beliefs to the facts in this case demonstrates her unwillingness, rather than her inability, to hold a rational understanding of the proceedings." The Ralph L.
Carr Colorado Judicial Center On appeal, Eden's lawyer disputed her competency by reciting at length the bizarre statements Eden recited over the course of the proceedings and at the jury trial: • Eden was 6.3 million years old and the child victims were 3.5 million years old • her prosecution was "cosmic case number one" • Yoder was "Adolph Hitler garbed in a female flesh," and had "996 reincarnations" • the district attorney was "Jack the Ripper in a past incarnation" • she testified "in the name of Vetracas Maraco" during the "cosmic part of the case" • she said she was "the Big Bang" Jurors, in turn, submitted questions asking about her mental state.
They ultimately convicted Eden and she received 48 years in prison. "A right of self-representation at trial will not affirm the dignity of a defendant who lacks the mental capacity to conduct her defense without counsel's assistance," wrote defense attorney Casey J. Mulligan on appeal.
"Allowing certain mentally ill defendants to represent themselves can create a humiliating spectacle that undercuts the fundamental constitutional objective of a fair trial." However, the Court of Appeals panel upheld Yoder's conclusion that Eden was competent based on her understanding of the charges and the proceedings. Tow wrote that Yoder was within her rights to rely on an expert's explanation that Eden's views were not delusional, but rather a fanatical adherence to religious beliefs.
Tow acknowledged a defendant can be competent to proceed yet still suffer from mental health issues relevant to their ability to knowingly and intelligently give up their right to counsel. "Eden points to nothing in the record that would indicate she has any mental health issues," he wrote. "A trial court cannot stop a defendant from invoking their constitutional right to self-representation, and consequently waiving their right to counsel, simply because the defendant wishes to adopt an inadvisable defense strategy.
" The case is People v. Eden..
