E EY GENERAL 

XAS 

Honorable Henry Wade 

District Attorney 

Dallas County 

Dallas, Texas 

Opinion No. C-329 

Re: Sheriff's responsibility 

in mental health cases. 

Dear Mr. Wade: 

You have requested our opinion on the following 

questions: 

1. Under what circumstances is it required 

that a police officer or Sheriff make a written 

application stating the circumStances under which 

an insane person wss taken into custody and, 

further, stating that it'is the officer's belief 

that the person is mentally ill and likely to 

cause injury to himself or others? 

2. . . .The procedure the sheriff's office 

should follow in handling insane persons as 

regards to their transportation and admission 

into private mental institutions? 

Article 5547-68, Vernon's CiviL Statutes, provides 

for the admission and detention of patients under the Mental 

Health Code in categories as follows: 

1. Voluntary Hospitalization 

2. Emergency Admission 

3. Temporary Hospitalization 

4. Indefinite Conunitrnent 

Article 5547-22 through 5547-26, Vernon's Civil 

Statutes, which govern voluntary hospitalization, Article 

5547-31 through 5547-39, Vernon's Civil Statutes, which 

govern temporary hospitalization, and Article 5547-40 through 

5547-57, Vernon's Civil Statutes, which govern indefinite 

comnitnents, place no requirements or statutory duties upon 

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Honorable Henry Wade, page 2 (C-329) 

peace officers to institute a proceeding for the commitment 

of mentally ill persons. 

Articles 5547-27 through 5547-30, Vernon's Civil 

Statutes, governs emergency admission of mentally ill persons. 

Article 5547-27 sets forth the duties and authority of health 

and peace officers where an emergency exists. Said Article 

reads as follows: 

"Any health or peace officer, who has reason 

to believe and does bel&eve upon the representation 

of a credible person, in writing, or upon the basis 

of the conduct of a person or the circumstances 

under which he is found that the person is mentally 

ill and because of his mental.illness is likely to 

cause injury to himself or others if not iraneaiately 

restrained, may upon obtaining a warrant from any 

magistrate, take such person into cust0ay, and 

immediately transport him to the nearest hospital 

and make application for. his admission, pursuant to 

the warrant of the magistrate. Such person admitted 

upon such warrant may be detained in custody for a 

period not to exceed twenty-four (24) hours, unless 

a further written order is obtained from the County 

Court or Probate Court of such county, ordering 

further detention. Provided,, however, that should 

the person be taken into custody on a Saturday or 

Sunday, or a legal holiday, then the twenty-four 

hour period allowed for obtaining the court order 

permitting further detention shall begin at 9:OO 

o'clock a.m. on the first sueceedinq business day." 

Article 5547-28, V.C.S.; sets out the requirements 

for admission of a patient to a mental or general hospital 

under emergency conditions. This Article reads as follows: 

"The head of a mental hospital or a general 

hospital shall not admit nor detain any person 

for emergency observation and treatment unless: 

'*(a) A warrant has been obtained from a 

magistrate ordering the appxehension and taking 

into custody of such person to be admittea, or 

an order of protective custody has been issued 

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Honorable Henry Wade, page 3, (C-329) 

pursuant to Section 66 of this code; 

"(b) A written application is made by a 

health or peace officer who has such person in 

his custody stating the circumstances under 

which the person was taken into custody and 

the officer's belief ana the reasons therefor 

that the person is mentally ill and that 

because of his mental illness is likely to 

cause injury to himself or others if not 

immediately restrained; and. 

"(c) A written ana certified opinion is 

made by the medical officer'on duty at the 

hospital, that after a preliminary examination 

the person has symptoms of mental illness and 

is likely to cause injury to himself or others 

if not immediately restrained.' 

It is well to note that Article 5547-27 and 

Article 5547-28, supra, apply to'those situations in which 

there is an emergency which necessitates the immediate 

hospitalization of a mentally ill person because his present 

mental condition is such that the person is likely to cause 

injury to himself or others if not innnediately restrained. 

It should be further noted that paragraph (b) of 

Article 5547-28 provides for a written application to be made 

by the peace officer who is operating under the emergency 

conditions as set forth in Article 5547-27, supra. 

After careful consideration of the applicable 

statutes and the briefs submitted to us, we are of the opinion 

that your conclusion correctly states the law in reference to 

your first question. We therefore adopt, as the opinion of 

this office, your conclusion which reads: 

"It is our opinion that the only instance 

when a~police officer must make a written 

application stating his opinion that the patient 

is mentally ill and is likely to cause injury to 

himself or others is when an emergency exists 

and a warrant is issued by a magistrate ordering 

the apprehension of the mentally ill person under 

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Honorable Henry Wade, page 4 (C-329) 

the stated provisions, of Articles 5547-27 

and 5547-28, supra. 

"We are of, the further opinion that when 

the Probate Court has issued an order dealing 

with the commitment Of a mentally ill person 

that the officer so directed by the order is 

obligated to execute the sane. 

"An order of the Probate Court is complete 

within itself and may not be conditioned by a 

requirement that the-officer make any written 

application to a mental institution. Such 

would be unconstitutional in that it would 

place an illegal limitation upon the jurisdiction 

of the Probate Court. Therefore, when the Probate 

Court has issued an-order directing an officer to 

transport a mentally ill person to a mental 

institution the order is effective at the time 

of its issuance and no written application is 

necessary to make the order effective." 

Transportation of Mentally 111 Persons 

In order to answer ybur second question, the 

statutes under Chapter III, Part 4 of the Mental Health Code 

must be reviewed. This-review reveals the follcming: 

When a person has been adjudged mentally ill by the 

Court, said Court issues an order of Temporary Hospitalization 

or Indefinite Commitment, and in said order commits the 

mentally ill person to a designated State Mental Hospital, a 

private mental hospital,'or to an agency of the United States 

operating a mental hospital (Art. 5547-58). 

The Court may authorize a relative or other responsible person to transport the patient to the designated 

mental hospital, or should the head of the designated hospital 

advise the Court that hospital personnel are available for the 

purpose, the Court may authorize the head of the hospital to 

transport the patient to said hospital; otherwise, the Court 

may authorize the sheriff to transport the patient to said 

hospital. (Art. 5547-61) 

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Honorable Henry Wade,,page 5 (C-329) 

When the Sheriff is to transport a patient, the 

clerk of the committing Court shall issue a writ of commitment in duplicate to him, commanding him to take charge 

of the patient and transport him to the designated mental 

hospital. (Art. 5547-62) 

The Sheriff shall not transport the patient in a 

marked police or sheriff's car or allow the patient to be 

accompanied by officers in uniform if other means are available. (Art. 5547-64) 

Every female patient shall be accompanied by a 

female attendant unless accompanied by her father, husband or 

adult brother or son during conveyance to the mental hospital. 

(Art. 5547-64) 

When the patient is delivered to the mental 

hospital, the Sheriff shall furnish one of the duplicate writs 

of cormnitment to the head of the mental hospital and the 

hospital, in turn, shall give the Sheriff transporting the 

patient a written statement acknowledging acceptance of the 

patient and of any personal property belonging to him, and 

the head of the hospital shall also file a copy of such 

statement with the clerk of the Committing Court. (Art. 5547- 

65) 

When an application for Temporary Hospitalization 

or Indefinite Commitment is pending and a Certificate of 

Medical Examination is filed stating that the patient is 

mentally ill and is likely to cause injury to himself or 

others, the Judge may order a health or peace officer to take 

the proposed patient into custody and transport him to a 

designated hospital. (Art. 5547-66) 

The only time a peace officer must make 

a written application stating the circumstances 

under which the person was taken into custody 

and stating his opinion that the person is mentally ill and is likely to cause injury to 

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Honorable Henry Wade, page 6 (C-229) 

himself or others is when an emergency exists, 

and a warrant of arrest is issued by a magistrate 

ordering the apprehension of the mentally ill 

person as provided by Articles 5547-27 and 

5547-28. Vernon's Civil Statutes. 

The procedure for peace officers in transporting mentally ill persons to designated 

hospitals is covered by statutes under Chapter XII, 

Part 4 of the Mental Health Code, and the pertinent 

statutes are discussed in the body of this opinion. 

Yours very truly, 

WAGGONER CARR 

Attorney General 

Assistant 

BA:&h;bk 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

W. V. Geppert, Chairman 

Malcolm Quick 

Wary K. Wall 

Brandon Bickett 

APPROVED FOR THE ATTOREEY GEEERAL 

By: Roger Tyler 

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