Part 4 of the South Bend Tribune's 4-part story on the Republican nominee for St. Joseph County councilman in District D, Wilson "Will'' Taylor, who reportedly was involuntarily commited to Madison Center and held for 13 days was published Wednesday, June 23rd. I somehow overlooked it. Some quotes:
Judge [William] Whitman told The Tribune later that the 72-hour provision does not require a hearing to be held within that time, but merely a determination to be made by a physician about the patient's state of mind and whether hospitalization should be continued. The 72 hours does not include weekends, holidays or other times when the courts are not in session.Posted by Marcia Oddi at June 25, 2004 10:05 AMIf a person thinks he is in Madison Center without just cause, Keckley [David Keckley, Taylor's attorney] said, he can have access to a lawyer and can file a writ of habeus corpus immediately. The judge can go to the hospital the same day to hold a hearing, Keckley said. The safeguard in the system, Keckley said, is that the judge is available and Keckley is always available as a public defender.
"Nobody ever told me any of that," Taylor said.
Madison Center officials said every patient is given an information guide upon admission. The guide includes a list of patient rights, including the right of an involuntary patient to petition the court for consideration of the treatment program. The guide also outlines grievance procedures for complaints and problems.
Taylor said he doesn't remember getting the booklet, but he might have. Additionally, he said, "I verbally asked to have a hearing as soon as possible and they said it's up to the doctor." Dr. Patta did not return phone messages asking him for comment. Taylor said he did not have an opportunity to talk to Keckley until 10 or 11 days after his admission to Madison Center.
The person who signs the complaint to start the commitment process is given statutory immunity from civil or criminal liability, Keckley said, as long as he acted without malice or bad faith. We have these statutes, he said, because one hears so many times about someone who snaps or has a nervous breakdown, and then people start talking about seeing the warning signs before that.