CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1946

Introduced by Assembly Members Santiago and Friedman

January 17, 2020

An act relating to mental health.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1946, as introduced, Santiago. Mental health services: involuntary detention.
Existing law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, authorizes the involuntary commitment and treatment of persons with specified mental health disorders for the protection of the persons so committed. Under the act, if a person, as a result of a mental health disorder, is a danger to others, or to themselves, or is gravely disabled, the person may, upon probable cause, be taken into custody by a peace officer, a member of the attending staff of an evaluation facility, designated members of a mobile crisis team, or another designated professional person, and placed in a facility designated by the county and approved by the State Department of Social Services as a facility for 72-hour treatment and evaluation. The act also authorizes a conservator of the person, of the estate, or of both, to be appointed for a person who is gravely disabled as a result of a mental health disorder. For these purposes, existing law defines “gravely disabled” to mean either a condition in which a person, as a result of a mental health disorder or chronic alcoholism, is unable to provide for the person’s basic personal needs for food, clothing, or shelter, or a condition in which a person has been found mentally incompetent, as specified.
This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to reform the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, including expanding the definition of “gravely disabled” to add a condition in which a person is unable to provide for their own medical treatment as a result of a mental health disorder, and emphasizing the necessity to create policies that prioritize living safely in communities.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NO   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to reform the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, including expanding the definition of “gravely disabled” to add a condition in which a person is unable to provide for their own medical treatment as a result of a mental health disorder, and emphasizing the necessity to create policies that prioritize living safely in communities.