The sentencing proceeding for a Carbon County man ended abruptly Tuesday afternoon in the county court when the defendant collapsed and was taken to a hospital.

As President Judge Roger N. Nanovic II was prepared to impose sentence on Joe Lincen Mesa, 67, of Lansford, on two counts of arson in a seven-year-old case, the defendant fell to the floor.Sheriff deputiestended to Mesa as an ambulance was called.Lehighton ambulance personnel arrived on scene and administered aid to Mesa, who was later transported to the Lehighton hospital to be checked out.On Aug. 8, 2011, following a three-day trial, Mesa was found guilty by a jury of two counts of arson. State police at Lehighton said he deliberately set a fire at his then home at 12 Cub Road in Penn Forest Township on Feb. 27, 2009.The motive, prosecutors said, was for insurance money. The home was in mortgage foreclosure at the time.Mesa never testified at the trial.The case has lingered in the court system since the conviction.A total of 46 continuances were filed in the case, most of them were by defense counsels for Mesa who cited mental health and other health issues. Mesa underwent examination by mental health experts to determine if he was competent to be sentenced and if he realized what the commonwealth accused him of doing.Last month Nanovic ruled, after reviewing numerous documents and expert opinions from both sides, that Mesa was competent to be sentenced for the two crimes.Tuesday, about 40 minutes into the proceeding, Mesa collapsed. Nanovic immediately halted the proceeding while court personnel responded. Sheriff deputies took charge of Mesa until the medical personnel arrived.Defense attorney Matthew J. Mottola, of the public defenders office, moved to continue the matter due to the circumstances, which Nanovic granted.It is not the first time in the case that Mesa suffered a medical problem. On the first day of the trial, during the afternoon session, Mesa suffered a medical problem which prompted authorities to summon an ambulance to the courthouse. As emergency medical personnel were ready to place him in a waiting ambulance to transport him to a hospital, Mesa said he felt fine and went home under his own power. The trial then resumed the next day.No information was available this morning concerning the results of the examination of Mesa at the hospital.A new sentencing date has not been set by the court.