How are mental health commitments handled?
If you believe a person is mentally ill or dangerous and should be committed to a mental health facility, you may petition any magistrate to have that person temporarily detained. If the magistrate finds probable cause that the person is ill, he may order detention for forty-eight hours. Within forty-eight hours the court hearing must be held to determine whether commitment is needed. The person believed to be mentally ill will be examined privately by a mental health professional. He or she also has the right to be represented by an attorney. If the judge believes commitment is needed, he may order a course of treatment as recommended by the local Community Services Board or actual commitment for up to one hundred eighty days. The person committed may appeal this decision to the circuit court.
Related Questions
- What provisions are made to ensure the privacy of the information identifying persons with disqualifying mental health adjudications or commitments?
- Why is it important to have information about mental health adjudications or commitments in a national database?
- How are mental health commitments handled?
