Author: Baker Act Attorneys

An involuntary hold is generally considered an effort of last resort and used when someone is deemed an immediate risk to themselves or others. When an involuntary hold is imposed on yourself or a loved one, it can have severe emotional and legal impacts.

Understanding the basics of an involuntary hold and its emotional and legal impacts can help you navigate the complexities of the mental health legal landscape. With sensitive and professional legal guidance on different types of Baker Acts, you can ensure that rights are protected and emotional repercussions are minimized.

What Is An Involuntary Hold

An involuntary psychiatric hold is a legal process permitting the state to step in when an individual is experiencing a mental health crisis. It is an extreme measure used to assist a vulnerable individual during a psychiatric and behavioral emergency, and it needs to be executed with care for the patient and within the legal framework.

In Florida, involuntary holds are carried out via the Baker Act, which judges, law enforcement officials, and mental health professionals can initiate. The intervention can be a short-term measure, lasting at least 72 hours. During this time, professionals aim to stabilize the individual and assess whether long-term intervention is needed.

Emotional Impact Of An Involuntary Hold

While involuntary holds exist to protect individuals and their communities, the process can be an intensely emotional experience for both patients and their loved ones. Understanding the emotional impact of an involuntary hold is essential to managing psychological and relational repercussions.

Loss Of Autonomy

Individuals may feel trapped and powerless when put under an involuntary hold, having lost control while under observation. Sensations of fear and vulnerability may bubble to the surface, making a fragile situation even more volatile.

Losing autonomy can often lead to anger, sadness, and confusion. This is especially pertinent among individuals who value independence, who may experience a form of trauma when being held against their will. By acknowledging the emotional turmoil of the loss of autonomy, families can support their loved ones through compassion and understanding.

Isolation

Individuals are separated from their loved ones and familiar environments when placed under an involuntary hold. In isolation, feelings of loneliness and abandonment can manifest, triggering distress.

Being kept in a psychiatric facility can erode emotional connection and trust, leading to anxiety and despair. Understanding the resounding vulnerability of this sense of alienation is important when offering compassionate support.

Stigmatization

Stigmatization is a significant emotional impact of an involuntary hold, causing individuals to feel misunderstood and marginalized. Being placed under observation can lead to shame and concern about how others perceive their current state.

Stigma adds a layer of emotional pain, compounding other emotional repercussions such as isolation. Recognizing the stigma of mental health is an essential step to creating a safe space for individuals to share their experiences and ask for support.

Fear And Guilt

Families may find themselves grappling with feelings of fear and guilt when watching a loved one be placed in a vulnerable position and acting out against the involuntary hold.

Feelings of helplessness and fear for their loved one’s safety may manifest, as well as guilt, while wondering whether specific actions contributed to the need for an involuntary hold. The emotional turmoil can strain families and their relationships.

Legal Impact Of An Involuntary Hold

In Florida, the Baker Act provides the legal framework for addressing mental health crises through involuntary holds. It stipulates a range of legal implications that can affect individuals and their families, such as the following.

Rights Of The Patient

While an involuntary hold may remove a patient’s autonomy, the Baker Act stipulates strict processes to guarantee the patient’s rights.

The Baker Act stipulates that a patient has a right to:

• Dignity and to be treated in a humane way
• Due process and opportunity to contest the need for a hold
• Communicate with an attorney and access legal representation
• Information about their rights and reasons for the involuntary hold
• Participate in treatment planning and decision-making when possible
• Privacy concerning medical records
• To be free from restraints or seclusion unless justified and documented

Civil Liberties Versus Public Safety

An involuntary hold highlights the delicate line separating civil liberties, such as the right to personal autonomy and public safety. It removes an individual’s freedom of choice and raises questions about personal rights, but it is applied to protect the individual and the public.

Public safety is an essential consideration, and if an individual poses a risk to themselves or others due to a mental health crisis, then certain civil liberties take second priority. Even so, it is essential to carefully consider the legal nuances of an involuntary hold and the necessary steps to safeguard individual rights while addressing the urgent need for public safety. Importantly, legal approval is needed to order an involuntary hold.

Long-Term Implications

The long-term implications of an involuntary hold are significant, affecting both families and the patient. A record of an involuntary hold can impact future opportunities for employment, housing, and personal relationships due to stigma. These implications amplify if the hold is extended to involuntary commitment. Other long-term legal ramifications could impact rights, such as the right to possess a firearm, and family legal matters, such as custody arrangements.

With these long-term legal implications in mind, involuntary holds must be conducted fairly and according to legal requirements.

Offering Legal Support

As much as we would like to have confidence in mental health facilities, there are instances when patients are kept unfairly or have their rights infringed upon. In this instance, a Baker Act attorney can help challenge a wrongful hold and reinstate an individual’s rights.

To navigate the complexities of an involuntary hold, one needs a strong understanding of legal options and advocacy resources. At Baker Act Attorneys, our team is committed to helping families understand the legal framework surrounding involuntary holds and protecting individuals who may be unfairly held.

We offer legal expertise and knowledge that empowers families to navigate these challenging situations confidently. If you or a loved one is experiencing an involuntary hold that needs to be contested, we want to hear from you. Call 855-429-0074 to find out more.

The Florida Mental Health Act – commonly referred to as the Baker Act – was passed to ensure that people experiencing mental and emotional impairment to the extent that they are a risk to themselves and others are able to get the treatment they need. However, the Baker Act is frequently invoked inappropriately to detain people who pose no threat of harm to themselves or those around them.

In this article, an experienced Baker Act attorney shares the most common Baker Act cases and explains what family members can do if their loved ones have been wrongfully taken into custody under the Act.

A Brief Overview Of The Baker Act

The Baker Act was passed in 1971 to protect the rights and liberty interests of mentally ill people while ensuring the safety of the wider public. Prior to its enactment, many people – particularly elders – were confined to mental health facilities against their will without proper cause, experiencing significant trauma in the process. The Baker Act is designed to ensure that people can only be detained for psychiatric examination if certain requirements are met and sets strict timelines for how long they can be kept in custody. It also sets out the circumstances under which they can be committed for longer periods (this is called ‘involuntary placement’). However, although these laws are an improvement on previous mental health legislation in Florida, many Baker Act attorneys frequently experience the flouting of these strict requirements in the cases that they deal with.

What Are The Criteria For Involuntary Examination?

The most commonly invoked provisions of the Baker Act are those that deal with involuntary examination – that is, what people are referring to when they say someone has been ‘Baker Acted’. Involuntary examination is the process by which individuals are taken into custody by law enforcement and transported to a ‘receiving facility’ for psychiatric examination, where they can be held for up to 72 hours. Involuntary examination can be initiated by an ex parte court order issued by the circuit court following a petition by family members, by a law enforcement officer, and by a mental healthcare professional following an examination. In all three circumstances, the person being Baker Acted must meet the following criteria before they can be taken into custody:

1. They are mentally ill, that is, they are experiencing mental and/or emotional impairment such that they are unable to control their actions or understand reality, and this impairment interferes with their ability to meet the demands of daily life; and
2. As a result of this impairment, the individual cannot determine if they need a mental health examination, or they have outright refused an examination; and
3. If they do not access treatment, they will likely suffer neglect to such an extent that they will experience substantial harm that can’t be avoided through the help of others, or there is a likelihood that without treatment they will cause serious harm to themselves or others.

Baker Act attorneys often find that family members, community workers and even law enforcement officers are unaware that section 394.463 of the Act expressly excludes people living with mental disabilities, suffering from substance abuse disorders, or experiencing intoxication. These categories of people are afforded assistance through other pieces of legislation, such as the Marchman Act, and do not qualify for involuntary examination under the Baker Act.

Common Misuses Of The Baker Act

Although involuntary examination under the Baker Act can offer an important intervention for some people, the most common cases Baker Act attorneys deal with are those involving the improper detention and examination of people who don’t meet the three criteria set out above. Let’s take a closer look at three common misuses of the Baker Act.

Accidental consumption of medication

The first case that attorneys commonly deal with is people who have accidentally taken too much pain medication or sleeping pills. It is fairly easy to take a few too many pills, especially if you are in severe pain. However, in several cases, people dealing with this issue are Baker Acted by the administrators at the hospital they go to, after medical professionals misunderstand their actions as an intentional overdose. Unfortunately, this trend has meant that many people who accidentally consume too much medication are scared to access the medical treatment they need.

Children experiencing behavioral issues

Sadly, many children with developmental disabilities are improperly Baker Acted when they are experiencing acute distress or overwhelm. In one case, a ten-year-old autistic boy who was having a difficult time after a family bereavement was handcuffed, detained, and taken to a receiving facility for involuntary examination when he became upset at school.

Over the past decade, thousands of Florida’s children have been seized and subjected to involuntary examinations under the Baker Act. While in some cases these interventions may be necessary to prevent children who are in immediate danger and at risk of harming themselves, in many cases, they do not meet the criteria for involuntary examination. Not only is wrongful Baker Acting traumatic for young children, but it can also leave their parents with expensive medical bills that they did not consent to.

People with substance abuse disorders

Another common type of Baker Act case attorneys encounter involves people being involuntarily taken into custody for mental distress resulting from substance abuse disorders. Given the express exclusions of the Act described above, this is an improper use of the Baker Act.

Families who want to help loved ones with addictions should instead consider filing a petition under the Marchman Act or applying for guardianship. While it’s very important that those with substance abuse disorders get proper treatment, the Baker Act is certainly not the way to go about it.

Factors That Heighten The Risk Of An Improper Baker Act Admission

In all three cases mentioned above, there are two further factors that can come into play that heighten the risk of wrongful detention and examination.

Health insurance

The first factor is health insurance. When an individual presents themselves at a hospital with stomach pains from taking too many pills (for example), and they have health insurance, they are more likely to be wrongfully Baker Acted. This is because the receiving facilities have a financial incentive to detain and examine individuals. The cost of Baker Acting someone is usually covered by a variety of sources, including the state, charities, insurance companies, and the individual who receives treatment. However, when someone has health insurance, unscrupulous facilities are motivated to detain patients for longer than necessary in order to charge higher bills to the insurance company.

Unscrupulous facilities

The risk of being wrongfully detained under the Baker Act is also determined by the receiving facility you attend. While some mental health facilities are staffed by experienced professionals who would never compromise their integrity for profit, other facilities are run by unscrupulous administrators who attempt to detain people for longer than necessary to charge expensive fees. In 2019, the Tampa Bay Times found that a certain facility had been exploiting hundreds of patients by detaining them longer than the 72-hour period allowed for in the Act.

What Can I Do If My Loved One Has Been Baker Acted?

If you suspect that your loved one has been wrongfully Baker Acted, you must contact a reliable Baker Act attorney as soon as possible. An experienced attorney will be able to help you secure the release of your loved one and ensure they receive the care and treatment they need.

If you do not act quickly, there is a risk that the facility administrator will file a petition at the circuit court requesting that your loved one be held for up to six months in terms of the Act’s involuntary placement provisions. This risk is especially present in circumstances where your loved one has health insurance or has been taken into an unscrupulous facility.

Not only could this be denying them the proper medical treatment they need – and the opportunity for them to have a say in this treatment – but it could also leave them with thousands of dollars in medical bills.

An Experienced Baker Act Attorney Is Here To Help

Mark Astor of Baker Act Attorneys has been helping Florida’s families with wrongful Baker Act cases for many years. Through his compassionate service, depth of legal skill, and strategic insight, he has assisted countless people who have been improperly detained for involuntary examinations.

W​​​​​hether you’re considering Baker Acting your loved one and need legal advice or think a family member has been wrongfully detained under the Baker Act, Baker Act Attorneys should be your first call.

Contact us 24/7 at 855-429-0074 and we’ll ensure your loved one gets the assistance they need.