Amanda Bynes
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The involuntary psychiatric hospitalization of Amanda Bynes has put a spotlight on California’s civil-commitment laws.
The troubled former teen star was admitted to a Los Angeles-area hospital on Friday, according to media reports citing her family’s attorney. She was involuntarily placed into care hours after a series of bizarre tweets were posted on her Twitter account, including a claim that a “microchip” in her head had forced her to make false allegations about her father.
All states have laws that allow patients suffering from a serious mental disorder to be hospitalized against their will. The legal conditions and rights of patients vary, but in California, involuntary civil commitment for psychiatric treatment is governed under a 47-year-old law called the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act.
Ms. Bynes was reportedly placed on a “5150 hold,” a reference to the section of the state’s welfare and institutions code that spells out the legal conditions under which a person may be detained for an initial 72 hours.
In California, an authorized mental health professional at a facility — or a police officer — can put a person in a 72-hour hold with probable cause to believe that the person is a danger to himself or others due to a mental disorder.
What qualifies as a “danger” can be a gray area. “Simply believing the person is very sick and in need of psychiatric treatment does not meet the criteria,” states a guideline sheet on the Los Angeles County Superior Court website.
If the patient is experiencing delusions, for example, the guidelines suggest presenting evidence at a hearing on whether the delusions “would lead the person to cause harm to self or others.”
During the 72-hour period, a hospital is required to perform an evaluation that takes into account “his/her medical, psychological, educational, social, financial and legal situation,” according to Mental Health America of California. The patient must also be advised of his or her rights.
A patient is allowed to see visitors, receive unopened mail and have access to a telephone. Unless there’s an emergency or a court deems the person incapable of making an informed decision, the patient may also refuse medical treatment or medications, according to the California association.
Generally, the longer the patient is detained, the more rights the person has to challenge the commitment.
By the end of the 72-hour period, the hospital may decide not to release the patient who refuses treatment but may certify the person for up to another 14 days of “intensive treatment.” That’s also known as a “14-day involuntary hold.”
Within four days of that extended period, the hospital is required to present evidence at a probable-cause hearing demonstrating why the patent shouldn’t be released. With the help of a patients’ rights advocate, the patient is given a chance to make the case for why such treatment is unnecessary, according to a legal brochure published by Disability Rights California.
A court-appointed commissioner or referee then decides if there’s sufficient probable cause to extend the stay. The patient also has the right to request to appear before a judge in a proceeding called a writ of habeas corpus hearing.
After 14 days, a court could decide to hold a person for another 180 days if the patient has “made a serious threat of substantial physical harm or attempted or inflicted physical harm on another due to a mental disorder” and still poses a physical danger to others.
Ms. Bynes’s family attorney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.