Mental Health Law Report articles from May 2005

Mental Health Law Report archives from May 2005

Court cautions against broad sweep when seeking involuntary medication.(U.S. v. Evans, April 12, 2005)
May 1, 2005... U.S. v. Evans, April 12, 2005 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals 404 F.3d 227, No. 04-4230 Petitions for involuntary medication must include individualized plans in order to satisfy Sell v. U.S., although indicating exact dosages...

Man sees crime as command from God, but is found competent to plead guilty.(U.S. v. Parker, April 14, 2005)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... U.S. v. Parker, April 14, 2005 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Unpublished, No. 04-1458 The court upheld the conviction of a man who was clearly delusional about his crime but was found competent to enter a guilty plea. ...

Evidence for prolonging commitment should not rest on initial convictions.(Re Commitment of Brown, March 22, 2005)
May 1, 2005... In Re Commitment of Brown, March 22, 2005 Supreme Court of Wisconsin 2005 WI 29, No. 03-1419 The circuit court should not rely on past criminal behavior to deny a man's petition for release from commitment as a sexually violent...

Court cannot presume competence without existing records to prove it.(Dalton v. Battaglia, March 23, 2005)
May 1, 2005... Dalton v. Battaglia, March 23, 2005 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals 402 F.3d 729, No. 03-3982 The district court could not assume competence to plead guilty in the absence of evidence to the contrary, the circuit court ruled. ...

New Jersey's high court clarifies role of battered woman syndrome defense.(State v. B.H./State v. Brennan, April 13, 2005)
May 1, 2005... State v. B.H./State v. Brennan, April 13, 2005 Supreme Court of New Jersey 870 A.2d 273, A-59 September Term 2003 870 A.2d 292, A-16 September Term 2004 Juries cannot consider battered woman syndrome when determining whether a...

Narrow time limits on compensation deny right to mental health treatment.(Department of Labor and Industries of the State of Washington v. Gongyin, April 7, 2005)
May 1, 2005... Department of Labor and Industries of the State of Washington v. Gongyin, April 7, 2005 Supreme Court of Washington 109 P.3d 816, No. 74908-6 A mental health counselor was entitled to reimbursement for counseling a girl four...

Attorneys avoid 'offensive' defense, ward off finding of ineffectiveness.(Lyons v. Luebbers, April 11, 2005)
May 1, 2005... Lyons v. Luebbers, April 11, 2005 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals 403 F.3d 585, No. 03-3183 Defense attorneys whose client would receive the death penalty were not ineffective, the court ruled, despite the lead attorney admitting...

Florida must swear to allegations when petitioning for commitment.(Kephart v. Regier/Regier v. Kephart, March 25, 2005)
May 1, 2005... Kephart v. Regier/Regier v. Kephart, March 25, 2005 Supreme Court of Florida 30 Fla. L. Weekly S 182, Nos. SC02-936 & SC02-2280 Probable cause petitions to commit a sexually violent offender in Florida must be supported by...

Justices differ on whether defendant understood upshot of legal maneuver.(writ of habeas corpus)(Nooner v. Norris, April 4, 2005)
May 1, 2005... Nooner v. Norris, April 4, 2005 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals 402 F.3d 801, No. 03-2103 A three-judge panel split on whether a man was competent enough to dismiss his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, with two emphasizing...

Incorrect standards in Strickland cases undermine ineffective assistance claims.(Johnson v. State, March 31, 2005)
May 1, 2005... Johnson v. State, March 31, 2005 Supreme Court of Florida 30 Fla. L. Weekly S 207, No. SC03-382, No.SC03-1680 Ineffective assistance of counsel claims under Strickland v. Washington, commonly used in cases involving mental...

Ineffective assistance of counsel.(Case Briefs)(Martinez v. Dretke, March 23, 2005)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Martinez v. Dretke, March 23, 2005 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals No. 03-21228 A defense counsel's choice to pursue an insanity defense with little proof that one was warranted would constitute fraud, the court ruled. In this...

Ineffective assistance of counsel: Dufour v. State, Dufour v. Crosby.(Case Briefs)(Dufour v. State, Dufour v. Crosby, April 14, 2005)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Dufour v. State, Dufour v. Crosby, April 14, 2005 Supreme Court of Florida 30 Fla. L. Weekly S 247, No. SC03-1326, SC04-232 Defense attorneys are not ineffective if they avoid seeking another mental health expert when the findings...

Ineffective assistance of counsel: Fisher v. Smith.(Case Briefs)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Fisher v. Smith, March 24, 2005 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals No. 04-1575 A man did not prove ineffective assistance of counsel in the face of weak testimony by mental health experts, the court found. Dr. Kliger, a...

Commitment/sex offender.(Case Briefs)(Commonwealth v. Chapman, April 14, 2005)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Commonwealth v. Chapman, April 14, 2005 Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts SJC-09370 The court found enough evidence to allow a previous sex offender to be committed longer, but a dissent suggested that committing someone who...

Sexually violent offenders.(Case Briefs)(In Re Care & Treatment of Schottel, April 13, 2005)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In Re Care & Treatment of Schottel, April 13, 2005 Supreme Court of Missouri SC86137 The court dismissed the defendant's challenge to the state's sexually violent predator act but found that he had enough evidence for a hearing to...

Involuntary commitment.(Case Briefs)(Tharp v. Psychiatric Security Review Board)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Tharp v. Psychiatric Security Review Board, April 14, 2005 Supreme Court of Oregon 110 P.3d 103, SC S51046 If substance dependency is not considered a mental disease for purposes of an insanity defense, a man could claim that...