involuntary treatment

Like every state, the Commonwealth has its own civil commitment laws that establish criteria for determining when involuntary treatment including hospitalization is appropriate for individuals with severe mental illness who are too ill to seek care voluntarily.

If you need assistance in filing a petition, contact the County Attorney’s Office at 859-491-7700

Process for Involuntary treatment to be granted:

  1. The AOC Form 710 below shall be filed with the District Court stating that the petitioner desires a sixty (60) day or three-hundred sixty (360) days of involuntary hospitalization.

  2. The petition shall state the following:

    • Petitioner’s relationship to the respondent;

    • Respondent’s name, residence, and current location, if known;

    • The name and residence of respondent’s parents, if living and if known, or respondent’s legal guardian, if any and if known;

    • The name and residence of respondent’s husband or wife, if any and if known;

    • The name and residence of the person having custody of the respondent, if any, or if no such person is known, the name and residence of a near relative or that the person is unknown;

    • Petitioner’s belief, including the factual basis therefor, that the respondent is mentally ill andpresents a danger or threat of danger to self, family or others if not restrained; and

    • If the petition seeks a three hundred sixty (360) day involuntary hospitalization of the respondent, the petition shall further set forth that the respondent has been hospitalized in a hospital or a forensic psychiatric facility for a period of thirty (30) days under the provisions of this chapter or KRS Chapter 504 within the preceding six (6) months.

  3. Once the petition is filed with the appropriate court, a preliminary hearing shall be set within six (6) days to determine whether the individual should be involuntarily hospitalized.

  4. Two (2) qualified mental health professionals shall examine the individual and within twenty-four (24) hours, certify their findings.

  5. After the preliminary hearing, the final hearing shall be held twenty-one (21) days of the date of holding, if held, or from the date of the examination by the mental health professionals.

    1. For involuntary treatment to be granted, a person must meet the following criteria via KRS 202A.026:

      • Be a danger to self/others/family, including actions which deprive self/others/family of basic means of survival such as provision for reasonable shelter, food or clothing;

      • Can reasonably benefit from treatment; and

    2. Hospitalization is the least restrictive form of treatment available.

      Additional factors that a court will use to determine whether involuntary treatment is necessary via KRS 202A.196 are:

  • whether the treatment is necessary to protect the patient or others from harm;

  • whether the patient is incapable of giving informed consent to the proposed treatment;

  • whether any less restrictive alternative treatment exists; and

  • whether the proposed treatment carries any risk of permanent side effects.       

A person who has ben admitted to involuntary hospitalization shall be released within seventy-two (72) hours, unless admitted for a longer period. KRS 202A.028. (is this for emergency hospitalization prior to final determination?) 202A.031

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. How long will the person be hospitalized if a judge determines that involuntary hospitalization is necessary? This is all determined by who fills out the Petition to the Court. KRS 202A.051 states that the patient’s hospitalization period will not exceed the sixty (60) consecutive days or three-hundred sixty (360) consecutive days that was requested on the petition.

  2. Will the individual be placed in jail if deemed to need hospitalization? No, unless the individual has criminal charges pending. The individual will not be held in jail pending evaluation and/or transport to hospital.

  3. What does mentally ill person mean? A person with substantially impaired capacity to use self-control, judgment, or discretion in the conduct of the person’s affairs and social relations, associated with maladaptive behavior or recognized emotional symptoms where impaired capacity, maladaptive behavior, or emotional symptoms can be related to physiological, psychological, or social factors

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2013 © Steven J. Franzen. All Rights Reserved.