Baker Act; Half Baked or Fully Proofed
By Elissa-Beth Gross
Campus Risk Solutions® wants Campus Administrators to be comfortable making decisions, within their authority, when an adult or minor is in danger of harming themselves or others, and that threat is imminent. We also stand by campus users who may be struggling with mental health challenges, and encourage them to know their rights and liberties under the law. The Baker Act of 1971, a Florida statute governing the treatment of those with mental illness, has national relevance in terms of how voluntary and involuntary commitment work.
Campus leaders should become familiar with the invoking or petitioning, and psychiatric evaluation process, because a lot can go wrong quickly.
Lawsuits can arise if crises aren’t brought under control in a timely and effective manner, or when they’re managed inconsistently with the law. This is a complex and delicate area in practice, reflected by the fact that the Baker Act itself is still being revised after 52 years on the books.
The Baker Act governs the ethical and safe treatment of people with mental illness, and has distinct requirements that pertain to minors. The National Institute of Health states, “Nearly one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness (52.9 million in 2020)”. Among adults, individuals fall into one of two categories; those who want help, who are willing to undergo evaluation and receive services, and those who do not want to be evaluated, committed, or provided counseling or medications. This second group of people may require involuntary commitment. Campus Administrators, their subordinates, and local responders are put in legal crosshairs, and sometimes in physical danger when an individual has to be stabilized, or is perceived to need stabilization.
Administrators should be able to distinguish between the Baker Act, the Marchman Act, and a Risk Protection Order (RPO), as well as be familiar with the scope of inpatient vs. outpatient resources. The Baker Act shouldn’t be implemented when an individual doesn’t have a “mental illness” as it’s legally defined. The Baker Act is not to be invoked to control a disabled or elderly person, such as dementia patient, or to treat someone who requires detoxification. Citizens should learn their rights regarding medication “mandates”. One Baker Acted young lady was tranquilized, and woke up the following day in a facility to find herself without a pillow or blanket.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a nonprofit legal advocacy organization formed to protect human rights, including the rights of people with mental illness, nearly 38,000 Florida children were subjected to psychiatric evaluation under the Baker Act during the 2018-2019 school year. In addition, The Health Law Firm states that “children shouldn’t be involuntarily confined at facilities that are not set up for them”. In separate cases, a six-year-old girl, and a boy of the same age, both diagnosed with ADHD, were inappropriately Baker Acted and held for multiple days. These students were removed from school by law enforcement, and as a result of being committed, they and their families experienced undue trauma. Also, efforts must be made (and documented) to contact a minor’s parents or guardians when invoking the Baker Act, with some exceptions made for emergency situations.
Campus Risk Solutions® recommends that School Boards and Boards of Trustees consult with a public defender before finalizing Baker Act policy. The Florida Court offers the Baker Act Benchguide as a reference. Generally, we’d like to see states and counties provide more preventative services and mental health courts. So that patients aren’t inappropriately warehouses, we need more healthcare facilities with ER-style resources specifically designed for mental health patients. On campus, we recommend identifying who will be authorized to invoke the Baker Act, and knowing where qualified and safe resources are for patient evaluation and commitment. Campus leaders may want to consider: providing Crisis Intervention Training (CIT); sharpening the skills and adding to the resources of Threat Assessment Teams; and, offering mobile Personal Emergency Response Systems or mPERS that at risk persons can carry on them to call for help when in crisis.
As Baker Act protocol advances, the expectation is that we’ll lean more on mental health counselors and less on law enforcement when serving our family, friends, co-workers and community members with mental health challenges. On behalf of Campus Risk Solutions®, we hope you and your campus stay safe, avert crises, and that people struggling with mental health issues receive the respect and proper treatment they rightfully deserve.