Bill Text: FL S1420 | 2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Mental Health Treatment
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Vetoed) 2013-06-12 - Vetoed by Governor [S1420 Detail]
Download: Florida-2013-S1420-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Mental Health Treatment
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Vetoed) 2013-06-12 - Vetoed by Governor [S1420 Detail]
Download: Florida-2013-S1420-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2013 SB 1420 By Senator Sobel 33-00539B-13 20131420__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to mental health treatment; amending 3 s. 916.107, F.S.; authorizing forensic and civil 4 facilities to order the continuation of 5 psychotherapeutics for individuals receiving such 6 medications in the jail before admission; amending s. 7 916.13, F.S.; providing timeframes within which 8 competency hearings must be held; amending s. 916.145, 9 F.S.; revising the time for dismissal of certain 10 charges for defendants that remain incompetent to 11 proceed to trial; amending s. 916.15, F.S.; providing 12 a timeframe within which commitment hearings must be 13 held; amending s. 985.19, F.S.; standardizing the 14 protocols, procedures, diagnostic criteria, and 15 information and findings that must be included in an 16 expert’s competency evaluation report; providing an 17 effective date. 18 19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20 21 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section 22 916.107, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 23 916.107 Rights of forensic clients.— 24 (3) RIGHT TO EXPRESS AND INFORMED CONSENT.— 25 (a) A forensic client shall be asked to give express and 26 informed written consent for treatment. If a client refuses such 27 treatment as is deemed necessary and essential by the client’s 28 multidisciplinary treatment team for the appropriate care of the 29 client, such treatment may be provided under the following 30 circumstances: 31 1. In an emergency situation in which there is immediate 32 danger to the safety of the client or others, such treatment may 33 be provided upon the written order of a physician for a period 34 not to exceed 48 hours, excluding weekends and legal holidays. 35 If, after the 48-hour period, the client has not given express 36 and informed consent to the treatment initially refused, the 37 administrator or designee of the civil or forensic facility 38 shall, within 48 hours, excluding weekends and legal holidays, 39 petition the committing court or the circuit court serving the 40 county in which the facility is located, at the option of the 41 facility administrator or designee, for an order authorizing the 42 continued treatment of the client. In the interim, the need for 43 treatment shall be reviewed every 48 hours and may be continued 44 without the consent of the client upon the continued written 45 order of a physician who has determined that the emergency 46 situation continues to present a danger to the safety of the 47 client or others. 48 2. In a situation other than an emergency situation, the 49 administrator or designee of the facility shall petition the 50 court for an order authorizing necessary and essential treatment 51 for the client. 52 a. If the client has been receiving psychotherapeutic 53 medications at the jail at the time of transfer to the forensic 54 or civil facility and lacks the capacity to make an informed 55 decision regarding mental health treatment at the time of 56 admission, the admitting physician may order continued 57 administration of psychotherapeutic medications if, in the 58 clinical judgment of the physician, abrupt cessation of 59 psychotherapeutic medications could pose a risk to the health or 60 safety of the client during the time a court order to medicate 61 is pursued. The administrator or designee of the civil or 62 forensic facility shall, within 5 days after admission, 63 excluding weekends and legal holidays, petition the committing 64 court or the circuit court serving the county in which the 65 facility is located, at the option of the facility administrator 66 or designee, for an order authorizing the continued treatment of 67 a client. The jail physician shall provide a current 68 psychotherapeutic medication order at the time of transfer to 69 the forensic or civil facility or upon request of the admitting 70 physician after the client is evaluated. 71 b. The court order shall allow such treatment for up toa72period not to exceed90 days afterfollowingthe date of the 73 entry of the order. Unless the court is notified in writing that 74 the client has provided express and informed consent in writing 75 or that the client has been discharged by the committing court, 76 the administrator or designee shall, beforeprior tothe 77 expiration of the initial 90-day order, petition the court for 78 an order authorizing the continuation of treatment for another 79 90 days90-day period. This procedure shall be repeated until 80 the client provides consent or is discharged by the committing 81 court. 82 3. At the hearing on the issue of whether the court should 83 enter an order authorizing treatment for which a client was 84 unable to or refused to give express and informed consent, the 85 court shall determine by clear and convincing evidence that the 86 client has mental illness, retardation, or autism, that the 87 treatment not consented to is essential to the care of the 88 client, and that the treatment not consented to is not 89 experimental and does not present an unreasonable risk of 90 serious, hazardous, or irreversible side effects. In arriving at 91 the substitute judgment decision, the court must consider at 92 least the following factors: 93 a. The client’s expressed preference regarding treatment; 94 b. The probability of adverse side effects; 95 c. The prognosis without treatment; and 96 d. The prognosis with treatment. 97 98 The hearing shall be as convenient to the client as may be 99 consistent with orderly procedure and shall be conducted in 100 physical settings not likely to be injurious to the client’s 101 condition. The court may appoint a general or special magistrate 102 to preside at the hearing. The client or the client’s guardian, 103 and the representative, shall be provided with a copy of the 104 petition and the date, time, and location of the hearing. The 105 client has the right to have an attorney represent him or her at 106 the hearing, and, if the client is indigent, the court shall 107 appoint the office of the public defender to represent the 108 client at the hearing. The client may testify or not, as he or 109 she chooses, and has the right to cross-examine witnesses and 110 may present his or her own witnesses. 111 Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 916.13, Florida 112 Statutes, is amended to read: 113 916.13 Involuntary commitment of defendant adjudicated 114 incompetent.— 115 (2) A defendant who has been charged with a felony and who 116 has been adjudicated incompetent to proceed due to mental 117 illness, and who meets the criteria for involuntary commitment 118to the departmentunderthe provisions ofthis chapter, may be 119 committed to the department, and the department shall retain and 120 treat the defendant. 121 (a) WithinNo later than6 months after the date of 122 admission and at the end of any period of extended commitment, 123 or at any time the administrator or designee hasshall have124 determined that the defendant has regained competency to proceed 125 or no longer meets the criteria for continued commitment, the 126 administrator or designee shall file a report with the court 127 pursuant to the applicable Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure. 128 (b) A competency hearing must be held within 30 days after 129 the court receives notification that the defendant is competent 130 to proceed or no longer meets the criteria for continued 131 commitment. 132 Section 3. Section 916.145, Florida Statutes, is amended to 133 read: 134 916.145 Dismissal of charges.—The charges against any 135 defendant adjudicated incompetent to proceed due to the 136 defendant’s mental illness shall be dismissed without prejudice 137 to the state if the defendant remains incompetent to proceed 35138 years after such determination or 5 years after such 139 determination if a charge related to commitment includes an 140 allegation of a violent crime against a person, unless the court 141 in its order specifies its reasons for believing that the 142 defendant will become competent to proceed within the 143 foreseeable future and specifies the time within which the 144 defendant is expected to become competent to proceed. The 145 charges against the defendant are dismissed without prejudice to 146 the state to refile the charges should the defendant be declared 147 competent to proceed in the future. 148 Section 4. Subsection (5) is added to section 916.15, 149 Florida Statutes, to read: 150 916.15 Involuntary commitment of defendant adjudicated not 151 guilty by reason of insanity.— 152 (5) The commitment hearing must be held within 30 days 153 after the court receives notification that the defendant no 154 longer meets the criteria for continued commitment. 155 Section 5. Subsection (1) of section 985.19, Florida 156 Statutes, is amended to read: 157 985.19 Incompetency in juvenile delinquency cases.— 158 (1) If, at any time prior to or during a delinquency case, 159 the court has reason to believe that the child named in the 160 petition may be incompetent to proceed with the hearing, the 161 court on its own motion may, or on the motion of the child’s 162 attorney or state attorney must, stay all proceedings and order 163 an evaluation of the child’s mental condition. 164 (a) Any motion questioning the child’s competency to 165 proceed must be served upon the child’s attorney, the state 166 attorney, the attorneys representing the Department of Juvenile 167 Justice, and the attorneys representing the Department of 168 Children and FamiliesFamily Services. Thereafter, any motion, 169 notice of hearing, order, or other legal pleading relating to 170 the child’s competency to proceed with the hearing must be 171 served upon the child’s attorney, the state attorney, the 172 attorneys representing the Department of Juvenile Justice, and 173 the attorneys representing the Department of Children and 174 FamiliesFamily Services. 175 (b) All determinations of competency mustshallbe made at 176 a hearing, with findings of fact based on an evaluation of the 177 child’s mental condition made by at leastnot less thantwo but 178 notnormore than three experts appointed by the court.The179basis for the determination of incompetency must be specifically180stated in the evaluation. In addition, a recommendation as to181whether residential or nonresidential treatment or training is182required must be included in the evaluation.Experts appointed 183 by the court to determine the mental condition of a child shall 184 be allowed reasonable fees for services rendered. State 185 employees may be paid expenses pursuant to s. 112.061. The fees 186 shall be taxed as costs in the case. 187 (c) A child is competent to proceed if the child has 188 sufficient present ability to consult with counsel with a 189 reasonable degree of rational understanding and the child has a 190 rational and factual understanding of the present proceedings. 191 The expert’s competency evaluation report must specifically 192 state the basis for the determination of the child’s mental 193 condition and must include written findings that: 194 1. Identify the specific matters referred for evaluation. 195 2. Identify the sources of information used by the expert. 196 3. Describe the procedures, techniques, and diagnostic 197 tests used in the examination to determine the basis of the 198 child’s mental condition. 199 4. Address the child’s capacity to: 200 a. Appreciate the charges or allegations against the child. 201 b. Appreciate the range and nature of possible penalties 202 that may be imposed in the proceedings against the child, if 203 applicable. 204 c. Understand the adversarial nature of the legal process. 205 d. Disclose to counsel facts pertinent to the proceedings 206 at issue. 207 e. Display appropriate courtroom behavior. 208 f. Testify relevantly. 209 5. Present the factual basis for the expert’s clinical 210 findings and opinions of the child’s mental condition. The 211 expert’s factual basis of his or her clinical findings and 212 opinions must be supported by the diagnostic criteria found in 213 the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 214 of Mental Disorders (DSM) published by the American Psychiatric 215 Association and must be presented in a separate section of the 216 report entitled “summary of findings.” This section must 217 include: 218 a. The day, month, year, and length of time of the face-to 219 face diagnostic clinical interview to determine the child’s 220 mental condition. 221 b. A statement that identifies the DSM clinical name and 222 associated diagnostic code for the specific mental disorder that 223 forms the basis of the child’s incompetency. 224 c. A statement of how the child would benefit from 225 competency restoration services in the community or in a secure 226 residential treatment facility. 227 d. An assessment of the probable duration of the treatment 228 to restore competence and the probability that the child will 229 attain competence to proceed in the foreseeable future. 230 e. A description of recommended treatment or education 231 appropriate for the mental disorder. 232 6. If the evaluator determines the child to be incompetent 233 to proceed to trial, the evaluator must report on the mental 234 disorder that forms the basis of the incompetency. 235 (d)(c)All court orders determining incompetency must 236 include specific written findings by the court as to the nature 237 of the incompetency and whether the child requires secure or 238 nonsecure treatment or training environmentenvironments. 239 (e)(d)For competencyincompetencyevaluations related to 240 mental illness, the Department of Children and FamiliesFamily241Servicesshall maintain and annually provide the courts with a 242 list of available mental health professionals who have completed 243 a training program approved by the Department of Children and 244 FamiliesFamily Servicesto perform the evaluations. 245 (f)(e)For competencyincompetencyevaluations related to 246 mental retardation or autism, the court shall order the Agency 247 for Persons with Disabilities to examine the child to determine 248 if the child meets the definition of “retardation” or “autism” 249 in s. 393.063 and, provide a clinical opinion as toif so, 250 whether the child is competent to proceed with delinquency 251 proceedings. 252(f) A child is competent to proceed if the child has253sufficient present ability to consult with counsel with a254reasonable degree of rational understanding and the child has a255rational and factual understanding of the present proceedings.256The report must address the child’s capacity to:2571. Appreciate the charges or allegations against the child.2582. Appreciate the range and nature of possible penalties259that may be imposed in the proceedings against the child, if260applicable.2613. Understand the adversarial nature of the legal process.2624. Disclose to counsel facts pertinent to the proceedings263at issue.2645. Display appropriate courtroom behavior.2656. Testify relevantly.266 (g) Immediately upon the filing of the court order finding 267 a child incompetent to proceed, the clerk of the court shall 268 notify the Department of Children and FamiliesFamily Services269 and the Agency for Persons with Disabilities and fax or hand 270 deliver to the department and to the agency a referral packet 271 that includes, at a minimum, the court order, the charging 272 documents, the petition, and the court-appointed evaluator’s 273 reports. 274 (h) After placement of the child in the appropriate 275 setting, the Department of Children and FamiliesFamily Services276 in consultation with the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, 277 as appropriate, must, within 30 days after placement of the 278 child, prepare and submit to the court a treatment or training 279 plan for the child’s restoration of competency. A copy of the 280 plan must be served upon the child’s attorney, the state 281 attorney, and the attorneys representing the Department of 282 Juvenile Justice. 283 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.