Federal attorneys want a mental competency evaluation for a Lake County businesswoman accused of sex trafficking two months before she goes on trial.
The motion for an expedited mental competency exam, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court in Hammond, notes that Rita Law’s current defense attorneys are concerned about her ability to take part in her defense.
The government’s motion also notes that Law has had seven attorneys already quit her case, and that some have reported Law acted in such a way they couldn’t properly defend her case and that she has even behaved erratically, sometimes trying to stop people from leaving the room.
Law, who was originally arrested in 2013, is accused of transporting women from Asia to work at her two Lake County massage parlors as prostitutes. According to court records, she would withhold the women’s passports.
Her case has been delayed seven times, usually after an attorney has withdrawn from the case. The current trial date is set for March 21. Federal attorneys ask in the motion that the exam be done quickly, adding that two of Law’s alleged victims oppose any more delays.
Law’s attorney Paul Stracci could not be reached for comment.
A status conference has been set for Feb. 26.
