Judge orders psychiatric examination for Meghan’s father

A federal judge in Florida has ordered a psychiatric examination for Thomas Markle, the estranged father of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, after his arrest on a charge of possessing child sexual abuse material.

The examination will assess whether Markle, 82, can understand the proceedings and assist in his defence. It is not a final decision on whether he is fit to stand trial.

According to Reuters, US Magistrate Judge Lindsay Griffin said information about Markle’s health, his age and a lack of recall gave her reasonable cause for concern. She appointed forensic psychiatrist Amie Gerodimos to conduct the examination and set 20 November as the deadline for a report to the court.

Markle was arrested in Florida on 6 November and charged with one federal count of possession of child sexual abuse material. No plea was entered at his first court appearance. He was released to a care facility under conditions including home detention and electronic monitoring, Reuters and the Associated Press reported.

US prosecutors say FBI agents searched two storage units registered to Markle in the Los Angeles area and seized about 78 items, including slides, film negatives and books. An FBI affidavit alleges that some images showed suspected child sexual abuse and that a witness identified Markle in two of them.

The investigation followed a report of suspected material among Markle’s possessions in the Philippines, according to the affidavit. Before the federal charge was filed, Markle denied his son’s earlier allegations to the Daily Mail, the Associated Press reported. His court-appointed lawyer did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the US case.