{"id":1510,"date":"2020-02-21T16:24:40","date_gmt":"2020-02-22T00:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sdc.wastateleg.org\/dhingra\/?p=1510"},"modified":"2020-09-17T00:09:59","modified_gmt":"2020-09-17T00:09:59","slug":"washington-mother-fights-to-lower-threshold-of-involuntary-commitment-during-mental-health-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2020\/02\/21\/washington-mother-fights-to-lower-threshold-of-involuntary-commitment-during-mental-health-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Washington mother fights to lower threshold of involuntary commitment during mental health crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"

From King 5 News<\/a><\/p>\n

A bill to make it easier to get someone mental health treatment, against their will, has the support of Jerri Clark.<\/p>\n

The Vancouver, Washington mother said current law made it hard to get help for her adult son, Calvin Clark.<\/p>\n

“My son met criteria for involuntary treatment the moment that he stepped off the roof of a hotel and plunged to his death,\u201d Jerri Clark told state Representatives Friday.<\/p>\n

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<\/div>\n
Calvin Clark was 23 when he died from suicide.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

His mother said he started suffering from severe mental illness when he was 19.<\/p>\n

After he acted out and attempted suicide, his mother tried getting him committed.<\/p>\n

“I had a crisis responder say to me, \u2018He’s clearly not well. I don’t think he’s safe, but he doesn’t meet the criteria under the law,” Clark said.<\/p>\n

She spoke in favor of\u00a0Senate Bill 5720<\/strong><\/a>, a bill to allow involuntary commitment if someone is deemed to be unsafe.<\/p>\n

Currently someone can only be involuntarily committed if it can be proven that the person\u2019s \u201croutine functioning\u201d is impacted.<\/p>\n

The legislative proposal replaces that phrase with \u201csafe behavior,\u201d a threshold that\u2019s easier to reach, enabling earlier intervention, supporters said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about making sure we are keeping people safe, it\u2019s about making sure people are not a danger to themselves, or others,\u201d said Sen. Manka Dhingra, D-Redmond.<\/p>\n

The bill would also extend the evaluation period from three days to five days.<\/p>\n

RELATED:\u00a0Proposal for longer involuntary commitment holds in Washington<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Lawmakers did hear testimony against the proposal.<\/p>\n

Kirkland resident Zelda Menard told legislators the current system is easy enough.<\/p>\n

Menard testified she was involuntarily committed three times between 2005 and 2009 without having to present as violent. She does not think the treatment made her better.<\/p>\n

“They wanted me to take meds I didn’t want to,\u201d said Menard, \u201cI was put in four-point restraints and drugged.”<\/p>\n

Menard said making it easier would only, “Ensnare even more people in a system that does nothing helpful for those in mental crisis.”<\/p>\n

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Defense attorneys told legislators the changes could result in the violation of civil rights if someone was wrongfully committed, especially for a longer period of time.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

“People have lost homes. People have lost jobs. College students drop out of school,\u201d said David Montes from the King County Department of Public Defense.<\/p>\n

Clark hoped telling her son\u2019s story would have an impact.<\/p>\n

“I think they understand that individuals who are very, very ill are falling through the cracks,\u201d said Clark.<\/p>\n

By Drew Mikkelsen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From King 5 News A bill to make it easier to get someone mental health treatment, against their will, has the support of Jerri Clark. The Vancouver, Washington mother said current law made it hard to get help for her adult son, Calvin Clark. “My son met criteria for involuntary treatment the moment that he stepped off the roof of a hotel and plunged to his death,\u201d Jerri Clark told state Representatives Friday. Calvin Clark was 23 when he died from suicide. His mother said he started suffering from severe mental illness when he was 19. After he acted out…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":1427,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-news"],"yoast_head":"\nWashington mother fights to lower threshold of involuntary commitment during mental health crisis - Sen. 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The Vancouver, Washington mother said current law made it hard to get help for her adult son, Calvin Clark. “My son met criteria for involuntary treatment the moment that he stepped off the roof of a hotel and plunged to his death,\u201d Jerri Clark told state Representatives Friday. Calvin Clark was 23 when he died from suicide. His mother said he started suffering from severe mental illness when he was 19. After he acted out...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/dhingra\/2020\/02\/21\/washington-mother-fights-to-lower-threshold-of-involuntary-commitment-during-mental-health-crisis\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sen. 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