BILL REQ. #: S-0164.2
State of Washington | 63rd Legislature | 2013 Regular Session |
Read first time 01/22/13. Referred to Committee on Human Services & Corrections.
AN ACT Relating to criminal incompetency and civil commitment; amending RCW 10.77.086, 10.77.0845, 10.77.088, 10.77.270, 71.05.235, 71.05.280, 71.05.320, 71.05.425, and 71.05.360; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1 The legislature finds that the public is
placed at grave risk by a small class of individuals who commit
repeated violent acts against others while suffering from the effects
of a mental condition and/or developmental disability that both
contributes to their criminal behaviors and renders them legally
incompetent to be held accountable for those behaviors. These
individuals continue to have the opportunity to commit serious violent
crimes because the primary statutory mechanisms designed to protect the
public from their violent behavior, criminal commitment to a penal
institution, or long-term commitment of the criminally insane, are
unavailable due to the legal incompetence of these individuals to stand
trial. The existing system of short-term commitments under the
Washington's involuntary treatment act is insufficient to protect the
public from the violent acts of these individuals because it fails to
recognize the important link in some individuals between continued
incompetence, a mental condition, and the risk to commit further acts
of violence. As currently enacted, the involuntary treatment act
presents an unacceptable risk that violent, incompetent, and mentally
ill individuals will be released back into society to commit further
acts of violence whereupon the cycle of short-term commitment and
violence repeats itself due to continued incompetence that is related
to the offender's underlying mental condition and/or developmental
disability. The legislature finds that changes to the involuntary
treatment act to account for this small class of individuals is
necessary in order to serve Washington's compelling interest in
protecting citizens from the repeated violent acts of a small group of
mentally ill and/or developmentally disabled incompetent offenders.
Sec. 2 RCW 10.77.086 and 2012 c 256 s 6 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1)(a) If the defendant is charged with a felony and determined to
be incompetent, until he or she has regained the competency necessary
to understand the proceedings against him or her and assist in his or
her own defense, or has been determined unlikely to regain competency
pursuant to RCW 10.77.084(1)(b), but in any event for a period of no
longer than ninety days, the court:
(i) Shall commit the defendant to the custody of the secretary who
shall place such defendant in an appropriate facility of the department
for evaluation and treatment; or
(ii) May alternatively order the defendant to undergo evaluation
and treatment at some other facility as determined by the department,
or under the guidance and control of a professional person.
(b) For a defendant whose highest charge is a class C felony, or a
class B felony that is not classified as violent under RCW 9.94A.030,
the maximum time allowed for the initial period of commitment for
competency restoration is forty-five days.
(2) On or before expiration of the initial period of commitment
under subsection (1) of this section the court shall conduct a hearing,
at which it shall determine whether or not the defendant is
incompetent.
(3) If the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that a
defendant charged with a felony is incompetent, the court shall have
the option of extending the order of commitment or alternative
treatment for an additional period of ninety days, but the court must
at the time of extension set a date for a prompt hearing to determine
the defendant's competency before the expiration of the second
restoration period. The defendant, the defendant's attorney, or the
prosecutor has the right to demand that the hearing be before a jury.
No extension shall be ordered for a second or third restoration period
as provided in subsection (4) of this section if the defendant's
incompetence has been determined by the secretary to be solely the
result of a developmental disability which is such that competence is
not reasonably likely to be regained during an extension.
(4) For persons charged with a felony, at the hearing upon the
expiration of the second restoration period or at the end of the first
restoration period, in the case of a defendant with a developmental
disability, if the jury or court finds that the defendant is
incompetent, the charges shall be dismissed without prejudice, and the
court shall ((either order the release of the defendant or)) order the
defendant be committed to a state hospital ((or secure mental health
facility)) as defined in RCW 72.23.020 for up to seventy-two hours
starting from admission to the facility, excluding Saturdays, Sundays,
and holidays, for evaluation for the purpose of filing a civil
commitment petition under chapter 71.05 RCW. The criminal charges
shall not be dismissed if the court or jury finds that: (a) The
defendant (i) is a substantial danger to other persons; or (ii)
presents a substantial likelihood of committing criminal acts
jeopardizing public safety or security; and (b) there is a substantial
probability that the defendant will regain competency within a
reasonable period of time. In the event that the court or jury makes
such a finding, the court may extend the period of commitment for up to
an additional six months.
Sec. 3 RCW 10.77.0845 and 2012 c 256 s 7 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) A defendant found incompetent by the court under RCW 10.77.084
must be evaluated at the direction of the secretary and a determination
made whether the defendant is an individual with a developmental
disability. Such evaluation and determination must be accomplished as
soon as possible following the court's placement of the defendant in
the custody of the secretary.
(2) When appropriate, and subject to available funds, if the
defendant is determined to be an individual with a developmental
disability, he or she may be placed in a program specifically reserved
for the treatment and training of persons with developmental
disabilities where the defendant has the right to habilitation
according to an individualized service plan specifically developed for
the particular needs of the defendant. A copy of the evaluation must
be sent to the program.
(a) The program must be separate from programs serving persons
involved in any other treatment or habilitation program.
(b) The program must be appropriately secure under the
circumstances and must be administered by developmental disabilities
professionals who shall direct the habilitation efforts.
(c) The program must provide an environment affording security
appropriate with the charged criminal behavior and necessary to protect
the public safety.
(3) The department may limit admissions of such persons to this
specialized program in order to ensure that expenditures for services
do not exceed amounts appropriated by the legislature and allocated by
the department for such services.
(4) The department may establish admission priorities in the event
that the number of eligible persons exceeds the limits set by the
department.
(5) If access to this program is not available, the department
shall enroll the person into developmental disability division benefits
in the community based upon the finding made in the evaluation that the
person is an individual with a developmental disability.
Sec. 4 RCW 10.77.088 and 2007 c 375 s 5 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1)(a) If the defendant is charged with a nonfelony crime which is
a serious offense as identified in RCW 10.77.092 and found by the court
to be not competent, then the court shall order the secretary to place
the defendant:
(i) At a secure mental health facility in the custody of the
department or an agency designated by the department for mental health
treatment and restoration of competency. The placement shall not
exceed fourteen days in addition to any unused time of the evaluation
under RCW 10.77.060. The court shall compute this total period and
include its computation in the order. The fourteen-day period plus any
unused time of the evaluation under RCW 10.77.060 shall be considered
to include only the time the defendant is actually at the facility and
shall be in addition to reasonable time for transport to or from the
facility;
(ii) On conditional release for up to ninety days for mental health
treatment and restoration of competency; or
(iii) Any combination of this subsection.
(b)(i) If the proceedings are dismissed under RCW 10.77.084 and the
defendant was on conditional release at the time of dismissal, the
court shall order the designated mental health professional within that
county to evaluate the defendant pursuant to chapter 71.05 RCW. The
evaluation may be conducted in any location chosen by the professional.
(ii) If the defendant was in custody and not on conditional release
at the time of dismissal, the defendant shall be detained and sent to
((an evaluation and treatment facility)) a state hospital as defined in
RCW 72.23.020 for up to seventy-two hours, excluding Saturdays,
Sundays, and holidays, for evaluation for purposes of filing a petition
under chapter 71.05 RCW. The seventy-two-hour period shall commence
upon the next nonholiday weekday following the court order and shall
run to the end of the last nonholiday weekday within the seventy-two-hour period.
(2) If the defendant is charged with a nonfelony crime that is not
a serious offense as defined in RCW 10.77.092:
The court may stay or dismiss proceedings and detain the defendant
for sufficient time to allow the designated mental health professional
to evaluate the defendant and consider initial detention proceedings
under chapter 71.05 RCW. The court must give notice to all parties at
least twenty-four hours before the dismissal of any proceeding under
this subsection, and provide an opportunity for a hearing on whether to
dismiss the proceedings.
Sec. 5 RCW 10.77.270 and 2010 c 263 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) The secretary shall establish an independent public safety
review panel for the purpose of advising the secretary and the courts
with respect to persons who have been found not guilty by reason of
insanity, or persons committed under the involuntary treatment act
where the court has made a special finding under RCW 71.05.280(3)(b).
The panel shall provide advice regarding all recommendations to the
secretary, decisions by the secretary, or actions pending in court:
(a) For a change in commitment status; (b) to allow furloughs or
temporary leaves accompanied by staff; (c) to not seek further
commitment terms under RCW 71.05.320; or (((c))) (d) to permit movement
about the grounds of the treatment facility, with or without the
accompaniment of staff.
(2) The members of the public safety review panel shall be
appointed by the governor for a renewable term of three years and shall
include the following:
(a) A psychiatrist;
(b) A licensed clinical psychologist;
(c) A representative of the department of corrections;
(d) A prosecutor or a representative of a prosecutor's association;
(e) A representative of law enforcement or a law enforcement
association;
(f) A consumer and family advocate representative; and
(g) A public defender or a representative of a defender's
association.
(3) Thirty days prior to issuing a recommendation for conditional
release under RCW 10.77.150 or forty-five days prior to issuing a
recommendation for release under RCW 10.77.200, the secretary shall
submit its recommendation with the committed person's application and
the department's risk assessment to the public safety review panel.
The public safety review panel shall complete an independent assessment
of the public safety risk entailed by the secretary's proposed
conditional release recommendation or release recommendation and
provide this assessment in writing to the secretary. The public safety
review panel may, within funds appropriated for this purpose, request
additional evaluations of the committed person. The public safety
review panel may indicate whether it is in agreement with the
secretary's recommendation, or whether it would issue a different
recommendation. The secretary shall provide the panel's assessment
when it is received along with any supporting documentation, including
all previous reports of evaluations of the committed person in the
person's hospital record, to the court, prosecutor in the county that
ordered the person's commitment, and counsel for the committed person.
(4) The secretary shall notify the public safety review panel at
appropriate intervals concerning any changes in the commitment or
custody status of persons found not guilty by reason of insanity. The
panel shall have access, upon request, to a committed person's complete
hospital record.
(5) The department shall provide administrative and financial
support to the public safety review panel. The department, in
consultation with the public safety review panel, may adopt rules to
implement this section.
(6) By December 1, 2014, the public safety review panel shall
report to the appropriate legislative committees the following:
(a) Whether the public safety review panel has observed a change in
statewide consistency of evaluations and decisions concerning changes
in the commitment status of persons found not guilty by reason of
insanity;
(b) Whether the public safety review panel should be given the
authority to make release decisions and monitor release conditions;
(c) Whether further changes in the law are necessary to enhance
public safety in cases where incompetency thwarts operation of the
criminal justice system and/or long-term commitment of the criminally
insane; and
(d) Any other issues the public safety review panel deems relevant.
Sec. 6 RCW 71.05.235 and 2008 c 213 s 5 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) If an individual is referred to a designated mental health
professional under RCW 10.77.088(1)(b)(i), the designated mental health
professional shall examine the individual within forty-eight hours. If
the designated mental health professional determines it is not
appropriate to detain the individual or petition for a ninety-day less
restrictive alternative under RCW 71.05.230(4), that decision shall be
immediately presented to the superior court for hearing. The court
shall hold a hearing to consider the decision of the designated mental
health professional not later than the next judicial day. At the
hearing the superior court shall review the determination of the
designated mental health professional and determine whether an order
should be entered requiring the person to be evaluated at an evaluation
and treatment facility. No person referred to an evaluation and
treatment facility may be held at the facility longer than seventy-two
hours.
(2) If an individual is placed in ((an evaluation and treatment
facility)) a state hospital as defined in RCW 72.23.020, under RCW
10.77.088(1)(b)(ii) or 10.77.086(4), a professional person shall
evaluate the individual for purposes of determining whether to file a
ninety-day inpatient or outpatient petition under chapter 71.05 RCW.
Before expiration of the seventy-two hour evaluation period authorized
under RCW 10.77.088(1)(b)(ii) or 10.77.086(4), the professional person
shall file a petition or, if the recommendation of the professional
person is to release the individual, present his or her recommendation
to the superior court of the county in which the criminal charge was
dismissed. The superior court shall review the recommendation not
later than forty-eight hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and
holidays, after the recommendation is presented. If the court rejects
the recommendation to unconditionally release the individual, the court
may order the individual detained at a designated evaluation and
treatment facility for not more than a seventy-two hour evaluation and
treatment period and direct the individual to appear at a surety
hearing before that court within seventy-two hours, or the court may
release the individual but direct the individual to appear at a surety
hearing set before that court within eleven days, at which time the
prosecutor may file a petition under this chapter for ninety-day
inpatient or outpatient treatment. If a petition is filed by the
prosecutor, the court may order that the person named in the petition
be detained at the evaluation and treatment facility that performed the
evaluation under this subsection or order the respondent to be in
outpatient treatment. If a petition is filed but the individual fails
to appear in court for the surety hearing, the court shall order that
a mental health professional or peace officer shall take such person or
cause such person to be taken into custody and placed in an evaluation
and treatment facility to be brought before the court the next judicial
day after detention. Upon the individual's first appearance in court
after a petition has been filed, proceedings under RCW 71.05.310 and
71.05.320 shall commence. For an individual subject to this
subsection, the prosecutor or professional person may directly file a
petition for ninety-day inpatient or outpatient treatment and no
petition for initial detention or fourteen-day detention is required
before such a petition may be filed.
The court shall conduct the hearing on the petition filed under
this subsection within five judicial days of the date the petition is
filed. The court may continue the hearing upon the written request of
the person named in the petition or the person's attorney, for good
cause shown, which continuance shall not exceed five additional
judicial days. If the person named in the petition requests a jury
trial, the trial shall commence within ten judicial days of the date of
the filing of the petition. The burden of proof shall be by clear,
cogent, and convincing evidence and shall be upon the petitioner. The
person shall be present at such proceeding, which shall in all respects
accord with the constitutional guarantees of due process of law and the
rules of evidence pursuant to RCW 71.05.360 (8) and (9).
During the proceeding the person named in the petition shall
continue to be detained and treated until released by order of the
court. If no order has been made within thirty days after the filing
of the petition, not including any extensions of time requested by the
detained person or his or her attorney, the detained person shall be
released.
(3) If a designated mental health professional or the professional
person and prosecuting attorney for the county in which the criminal
charge was dismissed or attorney general, as appropriate, stipulate
that the individual does not present a likelihood of serious harm or is
not gravely disabled, the hearing under this section is not required
and the individual, if in custody, shall be released.
(4) The individual shall have the rights specified in RCW 71.05.360
(8) and (9).
Sec. 7 RCW 71.05.280 and 2008 c 213 s 6 are each amended to read
as follows:
At the expiration of the fourteen-day period of intensive treatment
or a restoration period under RCW 10.77.086, a person may be confined
for further treatment pursuant to RCW 71.05.320 if:
(1) Such person after having been taken into custody for evaluation
and treatment has threatened, attempted, or inflicted: (a) Physical
harm upon the person of another or himself or herself, or substantial
damage upon the property of another, and (b) as a result of mental
disorder presents a likelihood of serious harm; or
(2) Such person was taken into custody as a result of conduct in
which he or she attempted or inflicted physical harm upon the person of
another or himself or herself, or substantial damage upon the property
of others, and continues to present, as a result of mental disorder, a
likelihood of serious harm; or
(3) Such person has been determined to be incompetent and criminal
charges have been dismissed pursuant to RCW 10.77.086(4), and has
committed acts constituting a felony, and as a result of a mental
disorder or developmental disability, presents a substantial likelihood
of repeating similar acts.
(a) In any proceeding pursuant to this subsection it shall not be
necessary to show intent, willfulness, or state of mind as an element
of the crime;
(b) For any person subject to commitment under this subsection
where the charge underlying the finding of incompetence is for a felony
classified as violent under RCW 9.94A.030, the court shall further
determine whether the mental disorder or developmental disability that
results in a substantial likelihood of committing similar acts is a
contributing factor to the person's continued inability to regain
competence; or
(4) Such person is gravely disabled.
Sec. 8 RCW 71.05.320 and 2009 c 323 s 2 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) If the court or jury finds that grounds set forth in RCW
71.05.280 have been proven and that the best interests of the person or
others will not be served by a less restrictive treatment which is an
alternative to detention, the court shall remand him or her to the
custody of the department or to a facility certified for ninety day
treatment by the department for a further period of intensive treatment
not to exceed ninety days from the date of judgment. If the grounds
set forth in RCW 71.05.280(3) are the basis of commitment, then the
period of treatment may be up to but not exceed one hundred eighty days
from the date of judgment in a facility certified for one hundred
eighty day treatment by the department.
(2) If the court or jury finds that grounds set forth in RCW
71.05.280 have been proven, but finds that treatment less restrictive
than detention will be in the best interest of the person or others,
then the court shall remand him or her to the custody of the department
or to a facility certified for ninety day treatment by the department
or to a less restrictive alternative for a further period of less
restrictive treatment not to exceed ninety days from the date of
judgment. If the grounds set forth in RCW 71.05.280(3) are the basis
of commitment, then the period of treatment may be up to but not exceed
one hundred eighty days from the date of judgment.
(3) The person shall be released from involuntary treatment at the
expiration of the period of commitment imposed under subsection (1) or
(2) of this section unless the superintendent or professional person in
charge of the facility in which he or she is confined, or in the event
of a less restrictive alternative, the designated mental health
professional, files a new petition for involuntary treatment on the
grounds that the committed person:
(a) During the current period of court ordered treatment: (i) Has
threatened, attempted, or inflicted physical harm upon the person of
another, or substantial damage upon the property of another, and (ii)
as a result of mental disorder or developmental disability presents a
likelihood of serious harm; or
(b) Was taken into custody as a result of conduct in which he or
she attempted or inflicted serious physical harm upon the person of
another, and continues to present, as a result of mental disorder or
developmental disability a likelihood of serious harm; or
(c) Is in custody pursuant to RCW 71.05.280(3) and as a result of
mental disorder or developmental disability continues to present((s))
a substantial likelihood of repeating ((similar)) acts ((considering))
similar to the charged criminal behavior, when considering the person's
life history, progress in treatment, continued incompetence, and the
public safety. In cases under this subsection where the court has made
an affirmative special finding under RCW 71.05.280(3)(b), the
commitment shall continue for an additional one hundred eighty day
period whenever the petition presents prima facie evidence that the
person continues to suffer from a mental disorder or developmental
disability that results in a substantial likelihood of committing acts
similar to the charged criminal behavior, unless the person presents
proof through an admissible expert opinion that the person's condition
has so changed such that his or her competence has been restored, or
that the mental disorder or developmental disability contributing to
the legal incompetence no longer has an impact on the person's
continuing risk to commit acts similar to the charged criminal
behavior; or
(d) Continues to be gravely disabled.
If the conduct required to be proven in (b) and (c) of this
subsection was found by a judge or jury in a prior trial under this
chapter, it shall not be necessary to prove such conduct again.
(4) For a person committed under subsection (2) of this section who
has been remanded to a period of less restrictive treatment, in
addition to the grounds specified in subsection (3) of this section,
the designated mental health professional may file a new petition for
continued less restrictive treatment if:
(a) The person was previously committed by a court to detention for
involuntary mental health treatment during the thirty-six months that
preceded the person's initial detention date during the current
involuntary commitment cycle, excluding any time spent in a mental
health facility or in confinement as a result of a criminal conviction;
(b) In view of the person's treatment history or current behavior,
the person is unlikely to voluntarily participate in outpatient
treatment without an order for less restrictive treatment; and
(c) Outpatient treatment that would be provided under a less
restrictive treatment order is necessary to prevent a relapse,
decompensation, or deterioration that is likely to result in the person
presenting a likelihood of serious harm or the person becoming gravely
disabled within a reasonably short period of time.
(5) A new petition for involuntary treatment filed under subsection
(3) or (4) of this section shall be filed and heard in the superior
court of the county of the facility which is filing the new petition
for involuntary treatment unless good cause is shown for a change of
venue. The cost of the proceedings shall be borne by the state.
(6) The hearing shall be held as provided in RCW 71.05.310, and if
the court or jury finds that the grounds for additional confinement as
set forth in this section are present, the court may order the
committed person returned for an additional period of treatment not to
exceed one hundred eighty days from the date of judgment. At the end
of the one hundred eighty day period of commitment, the committed
person shall be released unless a petition for another one hundred
eighty day period of continued treatment is filed and heard in the same
manner as provided in this section. Successive one hundred eighty day
commitments are permissible on the same grounds and pursuant to the
same procedures as the original one hundred eighty day commitment.
However, a commitment is not permissible under subsection (4) of this
section if thirty-six months have passed since the last date of
discharge from detention for inpatient treatment that preceded the
current less restrictive alternative order, nor shall a commitment
under subsection (4) of this section be permissible if the likelihood
of serious harm in subsection (4)(c) of this section is based solely on
harm to the property of others.
(7) No person committed as provided in this section may be detained
unless a valid order of commitment is in effect. No order of
commitment can exceed one hundred eighty days in length.
Sec. 9 RCW 71.05.425 and 2011 c 305 s 5 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1)(a) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, at the
earliest possible date, and in no event later than thirty days before
conditional release, final release, authorized leave under RCW
71.05.325(2), or transfer to a facility other than a state mental
hospital, the superintendent shall send written notice of conditional
release, release, authorized leave, or transfer of a person committed
under RCW 71.05.280(3) or 71.05.320(3)(c) following dismissal of a sex,
violent, or felony harassment offense pursuant to RCW 10.77.086(4) to
the following:
(i) The chief of police of the city, if any, in which the person
will reside; ((and))
(ii) The sheriff of the county in which the person will reside; and
(iii) The prosecuting attorney of the county in which the criminal
charges against the committed person were dismissed.
(b) The same notice as required by (a) of this subsection shall be
sent to the following, if such notice has been requested in writing
about a specific person committed under RCW 71.05.280(3) or
71.05.320(3)(c) following dismissal of a sex, violent, or felony
harassment offense pursuant to RCW 10.77.086(4):
(i) The victim of the sex, violent, or felony harassment offense
that was dismissed pursuant to RCW 10.77.086(4) preceding commitment
under RCW 71.05.280(3) or 71.05.320(3)(c) or the victim's next of kin
if the crime was a homicide;
(ii) Any witnesses who testified against the person in any court
proceedings;
(iii) Any person specified in writing by the prosecuting attorney.
Information regarding victims, next of kin, or witnesses requesting the
notice, information regarding any other person specified in writing by
the prosecuting attorney to receive the notice, and the notice are
confidential and shall not be available to the person committed under
this chapter; and
(iv) The chief of police of the city, if any, and the sheriff of
the county, if any, which had jurisdiction of the person on the date of
the applicable offense.
(c) The thirty-day notice requirements contained in this subsection
shall not apply to emergency medical transfers.
(d) The existence of the notice requirements in this subsection
will not require any extension of the release date in the event the
release plan changes after notification.
(2) If a person committed under RCW 71.05.280(3) or 71.05.320(3)(c)
following dismissal of a sex, violent, or felony harassment offense
pursuant to RCW 10.77.086(4) escapes, the superintendent shall
immediately notify, by the most reasonable and expedient means
available, the chief of police of the city and the sheriff of the
county in which the person escaped and in which the person resided
immediately before the person's arrest and the prosecuting attorney of
the county in which the criminal charges against the committed person
were dismissed. If previously requested, the superintendent shall also
notify the witnesses and the victim of the sex, violent, or felony
harassment offense that was dismissed pursuant to RCW 10.77.086(4)
preceding commitment under RCW 71.05.280(3) or 71.05.320(3) or the
victim's next of kin if the crime was a homicide. In addition, the
secretary shall also notify appropriate parties pursuant to RCW
71.05.390(18). If the person is recaptured, the superintendent shall
send notice to the persons designated in this subsection as soon as
possible but in no event later than two working days after the
department learns of such recapture.
(3) If the victim, the victim's next of kin, or any witness is
under the age of sixteen, the notice required by this section shall be
sent to the parent or legal guardian of the child.
(4) The superintendent shall send the notices required by this
chapter to the last address provided to the department by the
requesting party. The requesting party shall furnish the department
with a current address.
(5) For purposes of this section the following terms have the
following meanings:
(a) "Violent offense" means a violent offense under RCW 9.94A.030;
(b) "Sex offense" means a sex offense under RCW 9.94A.030;
(c) "Next of kin" means a person's spouse, state registered
domestic partner, parents, siblings, and children;
(d) "Felony harassment offense" means a crime of harassment as
defined in RCW 9A.46.060 that is a felony.
Sec. 10 RCW 71.05.360 and 2009 c 217 s 5 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1)(a) Every person involuntarily detained or committed under the
provisions of this chapter shall be entitled to all the rights set
forth in this chapter, which shall be prominently posted in the
facility, and shall retain all rights not denied him or her under this
chapter except as chapter 9.41 RCW may limit the right of a person to
purchase or possess a firearm or to qualify for a concealed pistol
license.
(b) No person shall be presumed incompetent as a consequence of
receiving an evaluation or voluntary or involuntary treatment for a
mental disorder, under this chapter or any prior laws of this state
dealing with mental illness. ((Competency shall not be determined or
withdrawn except under the provisions of chapter 10.77 or 11.88 RCW.))
(c) Any person who leaves a public or private agency following
evaluation or treatment for mental disorder shall be given a written
statement setting forth the substance of this section.
(2) Each person involuntarily detained or committed pursuant to
this chapter shall have the right to adequate care and individualized
treatment.
(3) The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed to deny
to any person treatment by spiritual means through prayer in accordance
with the tenets and practices of a church or religious denomination.
(4) Persons receiving evaluation or treatment under this chapter
shall be given a reasonable choice of an available physician,
psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, or other
professional person qualified to provide such services.
(5) Whenever any person is detained for evaluation and treatment
pursuant to this chapter, both the person and, if possible, a
responsible member of his or her immediate family, personal
representative, guardian, or conservator, if any, shall be advised as
soon as possible in writing or orally, by the officer or person taking
him or her into custody or by personnel of the evaluation and treatment
facility where the person is detained that unless the person is
released or voluntarily admits himself or herself for treatment within
seventy-two hours of the initial detention:
(a) A judicial hearing in a superior court, either by a judge or
court commissioner thereof, shall be held not more than seventy-two
hours after the initial detention to determine whether there is
probable cause to detain the person after the seventy-two hours have
expired for up to an additional fourteen days without further automatic
hearing for the reason that the person is a person whose mental
disorder presents a likelihood of serious harm or that the person is
gravely disabled;
(b) The person has a right to communicate immediately with an
attorney; has a right to have an attorney appointed to represent him or
her before and at the probable cause hearing if he or she is indigent;
and has the right to be told the name and address of the attorney that
the mental health professional has designated pursuant to this chapter;
(c) The person has the right to remain silent and that any
statement he or she makes may be used against him or her;
(d) The person has the right to present evidence and to cross-examine witnesses who testify against him or her at the probable cause
hearing; and
(e) The person has the right to refuse psychiatric medications,
including antipsychotic medication beginning twenty-four hours prior to
the probable cause hearing.
(6) When proceedings are initiated under RCW 71.05.153, no later
than twelve hours after such person is admitted to the evaluation and
treatment facility the personnel of the evaluation and treatment
facility or the designated mental health professional shall serve on
such person a copy of the petition for initial detention and the name,
business address, and phone number of the designated attorney and shall
forthwith commence service of a copy of the petition for initial
detention on the designated attorney.
(7) The judicial hearing described in subsection (5) of this
section is hereby authorized, and shall be held according to the
provisions of subsection (5) of this section and rules promulgated by
the supreme court.
(8) At the probable cause hearing the detained person shall have
the following rights in addition to the rights previously specified:
(a) To present evidence on his or her behalf;
(b) To cross-examine witnesses who testify against him or her;
(c) To be proceeded against by the rules of evidence;
(d) To remain silent;
(e) To view and copy all petitions and reports in the court file.
(9) Privileges between patients and physicians, psychologists, or
psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioners are deemed waived
in proceedings under this chapter relating to the administration of
antipsychotic medications. As to other proceedings under this chapter,
the privileges shall be waived when a court of competent jurisdiction
in its discretion determines that such waiver is necessary to protect
either the detained person or the public.
The waiver of a privilege under this section is limited to records
or testimony relevant to evaluation of the detained person for purposes
of a proceeding under this chapter. Upon motion by the detained person
or on its own motion, the court shall examine a record or testimony
sought by a petitioner to determine whether it is within the scope of
the waiver.
The record maker shall not be required to testify in order to
introduce medical or psychological records of the detained person so
long as the requirements of RCW 5.45.020 are met except that portions
of the record which contain opinions as to the detained person's mental
state must be deleted from such records unless the person making such
conclusions is available for cross-examination.
(10) Insofar as danger to the person or others is not created, each
person involuntarily detained, treated in a less restrictive
alternative course of treatment, or committed for treatment and
evaluation pursuant to this chapter shall have, in addition to other
rights not specifically withheld by law, the following rights:
(a) To wear his or her own clothes and to keep and use his or her
own personal possessions, except when deprivation of same is essential
to protect the safety of the resident or other persons;
(b) To keep and be allowed to spend a reasonable sum of his or her
own money for canteen expenses and small purchases;
(c) To have access to individual storage space for his or her
private use;
(d) To have visitors at reasonable times;
(e) To have reasonable access to a telephone, both to make and
receive confidential calls, consistent with an effective treatment
program;
(f) To have ready access to letter writing materials, including
stamps, and to send and receive uncensored correspondence through the
mails;
(g) To discuss treatment plans and decisions with professional
persons;
(h) Not to consent to the administration of antipsychotic
medications and not to thereafter be administered antipsychotic
medications unless ordered by a court under RCW 71.05.217 or pursuant
to an administrative hearing under RCW 71.05.215;
(i) Not to consent to the performance of electroconvulsant therapy
or surgery, except emergency life-saving surgery, unless ordered by a
court under RCW 71.05.217;
(j) Not to have psychosurgery performed on him or her under any
circumstances;
(k) To dispose of property and sign contracts unless such person
has been adjudicated an incompetent in a court proceeding directed to
that particular issue.
(11) Every person involuntarily detained shall immediately be
informed of his or her right to a hearing to review the legality of his
or her detention and of his or her right to counsel, by the
professional person in charge of the facility providing evaluation and
treatment, or his or her designee, and, when appropriate, by the court.
If the person so elects, the court shall immediately appoint an
attorney to assist him or her.
(12) A person challenging his or her detention or his or her
attorney shall have the right to designate and have the court appoint
a reasonably available independent physician, psychiatric advanced
registered nurse practitioner, or licensed mental health professional
to examine the person detained, the results of which examination may be
used in the proceeding. The person shall, if he or she is financially
able, bear the cost of such expert examination, otherwise such expert
examination shall be at public expense.
(13) Nothing contained in this chapter shall prohibit the patient
from petitioning by writ of habeas corpus for release.
(14) Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit a person committed on
or prior to January 1, 1974, from exercising a right available to him
or her at or prior to January 1, 1974, for obtaining release from
confinement.
(15) Nothing in this section permits any person to knowingly
violate a no-contact order or a condition of an active judgment and
sentence or an active condition of supervision by the department of
corrections.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 11 If any provision of this act or its
application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other
persons or circumstances is not affected.