Mental Health Law Report articles from September 2004

Mental Health Law Report archives from September 2004

The voice of one judge.(Slants & Trends)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... THE VOICE OF ONE JUDGE does not signal a trend, but if his language is strong enough it could wind up cited elsewhere. All the more reason to pay close attention to Justice Michael A. Wolff of the Supreme Court of Missouri for lamenting that...

Court fails to find parity requirement in N.Y.'s insurance discrimination law.
September 1, 2004... In Re Polan v. State of New York Insurance Dept. No. 97, Court of Appeals of New York Appeal from In Re Application of Polan No. 1645, Supreme Court of New York, Appellate Division, First Department The court rejected a...

'Clear and convincing evidence' sufficient for sex offender laws.
September 1, 2004... Commonwealth v. Santiago, Aug. 18, 2004 No 208 MAP 2003 Supreme Court of Pennsylvania The court reversed a lower court ruling declaring Pennsylvania's Registration of Sexual Offenders Act unconstitutional. In overturning the...

Woman found not 'mentally sufficient' still has constitutional right to testify.(Insanity Defense)
September 1, 2004... Quarels v. Commonwealth, Aug. 26, 2004 Supreme Court of Kentucky No. 2002-SC-0289-MR A defendant who lacks the mental capacity to waive an insanity defense still has the right to testify, regardless of whether the testimony helps...

Court splits on allowing exams of young victims of sex crimes.
September 1, 2004... In Re Michael H., Aug. 30, 2004 Supreme Court of South Carolina, No. 25529 A trial judge can order a psychological examination of a child victim of sex abuse, but only if the child was the one who made the complaint, the court ruled....

Right to challenge detention affirmed, unconstitutionality claims dismissed.(Sex Offender Law)
September 1, 2004... Hawaii v. Guidry, Aug. 6, 2004 No. 22727; 96 P.3d 242 Supreme Court of Hawaii The court recommended allowing convicted sex offenders to institute a special proceeding to challenge their involuntary commitment, but rejected the claim that...

Courts can determine competency later under certain circumstances.
September 1, 2004... Commonwealth v. Santiago, Aug. 17, 2004 Supreme Court of Pennsylvania 180 Capital Appeal Docket A court considering post-conviction relief did not abuse its discretion by holding a retrospective hearing to determine an inmate's...

Parent "reimbursed" for own treatment of child.
September 1, 2004... Bucks Co. Dept. of Mental Health v. de Mora August 18, 2004, 379 F.3d 61 Third Circuit Court of Appeals A federal appeals court ruled that the parent of a developmentally disabled child could be "reimbursed" under the Individuals...

Challenge to mental health question rejected.
September 1, 2004... Roe v. Johnson, September 1, 2004 Southern District of New York No. 03 CIV 8501 A federal district court has rejected a challenge to a question regarding mental health on an application for admission to the bar. "Jane Roe" was...

Juvenile justice I.(Resources)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... JUVENILE JUSTICE I--The National Mental Health Association has released free guides, Advocacy Guide to Rights Protection for Youths in the Juvenile Justice System and Privatization and Managed Care in the Juvenile Justice System. The guides are...

Juvenile justice II.(Resources)(Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... JUVENILE JUSTICE II--The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's (OJJDP) 8-page bulletin, Assessing the Mental Health Status of Youth in Juvenile Justice Settings, by Gail Wasserman, cites the problem of finding reliable,...

Mental health parity.(Legislative Update)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... MENTAL HEALTH PARITY--The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has published an amendment to an interim final regulation to conform federal regulation to the sunset date established...

Veterans services.(Legislative Update)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... VETERANS SERVICES--Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) has introduced a bill to improve treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans of the war on terrorism and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Enhancement of Veterans Mental...

If it's election season.(Closing Argument)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... IF IT'S ELECTION SEASON, it's time for another battle to assure that psychiatric inpatients keep the right to vote. California Protection and Advocacy, along with the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, pushed administrators at the Veterans'...