Involuntary Commitment

[lyric1863]

My question involves public health law in the State of: New York

My 17 year old son was involuntarily committed to the hospital for a suicidal threat. The hospital now states that they can basically keep him for as long as they want and also transfer him to a state hospital 3 hours away from me.

I want him to come home.

What are mine and his legal rights?

I got a name of the some lawyer (from the hospital) who is the attorney for the NY state mental health department who when I straight out asked how many cases he won and the patient could leave, he said he had never won a case. So basically any hearing involving him and the hospital is meaningless.

I am desperate for help. I don't want my son transferred away where I can not see him. They have him so heavily medicated now he could not harm a fly.

[Baz744]

I got a name of the some lawyer (from the hospital) who is the attorney for the NY state mental health department who when I straight out asked how many cases he won and the patient could leave, he said he had never won a case. So basically any hearing involving him and the hospital is meaningless.

If you accept the truth of this advice, then his situation is hopeless. Unless you plan a prison break, his detention is wholly at the mercy of the state.

You might want to talk to a better lawyer. Remember: if this guy is actually employed by the state department of mental health, his incentive is against rocking the boat. His paycheck depends on him being a good boy. Which means, guess what, letting the state do whatever it wants to people have been Baker Acted.

There should be periodic hearings at which the state has to establish his continuing need for detention. If you want your son to have any chance of prevailing at those hearings, hire him a lawyer. Find a lawyer specifically experienced with the Baker Act.

If there are no hearings, or if the next hearing is a long time away, your son also has the right to file a writ of habeus corpus to challenge the lawfulness of his imprisonment. His odds of prevailing are slim, I suspect, at this point.

Watch this video, and explain to your son she says:

http://www.encyclopedia.com/video/Wx...act-abuse.aspx

In order to get out by habeus corpus, he'll have to prove to a judge the same thing he has to prove to the provider: that he no longer poses an imminent threat of harm to himself or others. Unlike the provider, the judge has no financial incentive to keep your son locked up indefinitely.