II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4302

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

OCTOBER 7, 2004

Received 

AN ACT

To amend title 21, District of Columbia Official Code, to 

enact the provisions of the Mental Health Civil Commitment Act of 2002 which affect the Commission on Mental Health and require action by Congress in order to 

take effect.
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘District of Columbia 

5 Mental Health Civil Commitment Modernization Act of 

6 2004’’. 

7 SEC. 2. COMPOSITION, APPOINTMENT, AND ORGANIZATION 

8 OF COMMISSION ON MENTAL HEALTH. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 21–502, District of Co10 lumbia Official Code, is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘§ 21–502. Commission on Mental Health; composi12 tion; appointment and terms of members; 

13 organization; chairperson; salaries 

14 ‘‘(a) The Commission on Mental Health is continued. 

15 The Chief Judge of the Superior Court of the District of 

16 Columbia shall appoint the members of the Commission, 

17 and the Commission shall be composed of 9 members and 

18 an alternate chairperson. One member shall be a mag19 istrate judge of the Court appointed pursuant to title 11, 

20 District of Columbia Official Code, who shall be a member 

21 of the bar of the Court and has engaged in active practice 

22 of law in the District of Columbia for a period of at least 

23 5 years prior to his or her appointment. The magistrate 

24 judge shall be the Chairperson of the Commission and act 

25 as the administrative head of the Commission. The Chair-
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1 person shall preside at all hearings and direct all of the 

2 proceedings before the Commission. Eight members of the 

3 Commission shall be psychiatrists or qualified psycholo4 gists, as those terms are defined in section 21–501, who 

5 have not had less than 5 years of experience in the diag6 nosis and treatment of mental illness. 

7 ‘‘(b)(1) Appointment of members of the Commission 

8 shall be for terms of 4 years. 

9 ‘‘(2) The initial appointment of a psychiatrist or a 

10 qualified psychologist shall be for a probationary period 

11 of one year. After the initial one-year probationary ap12 pointment, subsequent appointments of the psychiatrist or 

13 qualified psychologist shall be for terms of 4 years. 

14 ‘‘(c) The psychiatrist or qualified psychologist mem15 bers of the Commission shall serve on a part-time basis 

16 and shall be rotated by assignment of the Chief Judge of 

17 the Court, so that at any one time the Commission shall 

18 consist of the Chairperson and 2 members, each of whom 

19 is either a psychiatrist or a qualified psychologist. Mem20 bers of the Commission who are psychiatrists or qualified 

21 psychologists may practice their professions during their 

22 tenures of office, but may not participate in the disposition 

23 of a case of a person in which they have rendered profes24 sional service or advice. 
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1 ‘‘(d) The Chief Judge of the Court shall appoint a 

2 magistrate judge of the Court to serve as an alternate 

3 Chairperson of the Commission. The alternate Chair4 person shall serve on a part time basis and act as Chair5 person in the absence of the permanent Chairperson. 

6 ‘‘(e) The rate of compensation for the members of 

7 the Commission who are psychiatrists or qualified psy8 chologists shall be fixed by the Executive Officer of the 

9 Court.’’. 

10 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The item relating to 

11 section 21–502 in the table of sections for subchapter I 

12 of chapter 5 of title 21, District of Columbia Official Code, 

13 is amended to read as follows:

‘‘21–502. Commission on Mental Health; composition; appointment and terms 

of members; organization; chairperson; salaries.’’.

14 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION FOR CURRENT

15 MEMBERS.—The amendments made by this section shall 

16 take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act, except 

17 nothing in this section or the amendments made by this 

18 section may be construed to affect the appointment or 

19 term of service of any individual who serves as a member 

20 or alternate member of the Commission on Mental Health 

21 (including an individual who serves as the Chairperson or 

22 alternate Chairperson of the Commission) on such date. 
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1 SEC. 3. COMMISSION MEMBERS DEEMED COMPETENT AND 

2 COMPELLABLE WITNESSES AT MENTAL 

3 HEALTH PROCEEDINGS. 

4 Section 21–503(b), District of Columbia Official 

5 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘The Commission, or any 

6 of the members thereof,’’ and inserting ‘‘Commission 

7 members who are psychiatrists or qualified psychologists’’. 

8 SEC. 4. DETENTION FOR EMERGENCY OBSERVATION AND 

9 DIAGNOSIS. 

10 Section 21–526, District of Columbia Official Code, 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub12 sections: 

13 ‘‘(c) The maximum period of time for detention for 

14 emergency observation and diagnosis may be extended for 

15 up to 21 days, if judicial proceedings under subchapter 

16 IV of this chapter have been commenced before the expira17 tion of the order entered under section 21–524 and a psy18 chiatrist or qualified psychologist has examined the person 

19 who is the subject of the judicial proceedings and is of 

20 the opinion that the person being detained remains men21 tally ill and is likely to injure himself or others as a result 

22 of the illness unless the emergency detention is continued. 

23 For good cause shown, the Court may extend the period 

24 of detention for emergency observation and diagnosis. The 

25 period of detention for emergency observation and diag26 nosis may be extended pursuant to section 21–543(b) or 
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1 following a hearing before the Commission pursuant to 

2 subsections (d) and (e) of this section. 

3 ‘‘(d) If the Commission, at the conclusion of its hear4 ing pursuant to section 21–542, has found that the person 

5 with respect to whom the hearing was held is mentally 

6 ill and, because of the mental illness, is likely to injure 

7 himself or others if not committed, and has concluded that 

8 a recommendation of inpatient commitment is the least 

9 restrictive alternative available to prevent the person from 

10 injuring himself or others, the detention for emergency ob11 servation and diagnosis may be continued by the Depart12 ment or hospital—

13 ‘‘(1) pending the conclusion of judicial pro14 ceedings under subchapter IV of this chapter; 

15 ‘‘(2) until the Court enters an order dis16 charging the person; or 

17 ‘‘(3) until the Department or hospital deter18 mines that continued hospitalization is no longer the 

19 least restrictive form of treatment appropriate for 

20 the person being detained. 

21 ‘‘(e) If the Commission, at the conclusion of its hear22 ing, finds that the person is mentally ill, is likely to injure 

23 himself or other persons as a result of mental illness if 

24 not committed, and that outpatient treatment is the least 

25 restrictive form of commitment appropriate, then, within 
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1 14 days of the date of the hearing, the person shall be 

2 discharged from inpatient status and shall receive out3 patient mental health services or mental health supports 

4 as an emergency nonvoluntary patient consistent with this 

5 subchapter, pending the conclusion of judicial proceedings 

6 under subchapter IV of this chapter.’’. 

7 SEC. 5. REPRESENTATION BY COUNSEL OF PERSONS AL8 LEGED TO BE MENTALLY ILL. 

9 Section 21–543, District of Columbia Official Code, 

10 is amended—

11 (1) in subsection (a) (as redesignated by section 

12 2(r)(1) of the Mental Health Civil Commitment Act 

13 of 2002), by striking the last sentence; and 

14 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub15 section: 

16 ‘‘(b) The Commission may not grant a continuance 

17 for counsel to prepare his case for more than 5 days. The 

18 Commission may grant continuances for good cause shown 

19 for periods of up to 14 days. If the Commission grants 

20 a continuance, the emergency observation and detention 

21 of the person about whom the hearing is being held shall 

22 be extended for the duration of the continuance.’’. 
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1 SEC. 6. HEARING AND DETERMINATION ON QUESTION OF 

2 MENTAL ILLNESS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 21–545, District of Co4 lumbia Official Code, is amended—

5 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘jury trial’’ 

6 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘jury trial or a 

7 trial by the Court’’; 

8 (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as fol9 lows: 

10 ‘‘(b)(1) If the Court or jury finds that the person is 

11 not mentally ill or is not likely to injure himself or others 

12 as a result of mental illness, the Court shall dismiss the 

13 petition and order the person’s release. 

14 ‘‘(2) If the Court or jury finds that the person is men15 tally ill and, because of that mental illness, is likely to 

16 injure himself or others if not committed, the Court may 

17 order the person’s commitment to the Department or to 

18 any other facility, hospital, or mental health provider that 

19 the Court believes is the least restrictive alternative con20 sistent with the best interests of the person and the public. 

21 An order of commitment issued pursuant to this para22 graph shall be for a period of one year.’’; and 

23 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub24 sections: 

25 ‘‘(c) The psychiatrists and qualified psychologists 

26 who are members of the Commission shall be competent 
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1 and compellable witnesses at a hearing or trial held pursu2 ant to this chapter. 

3 ‘‘(d) The jury to be used in any case where a jury 

4 trial is demanded under this chapter shall be impaneled, 

5 upon order of the Court, from the jurors in attendance 

6 upon other branches of the Court, who shall perform the 

7 services in addition to and as part of their duties in the 

8 Court.’’. 

9 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

10 this section shall apply with respect to trials under section 

11 21–545, District of Columbia Code, which are initiated on 

12 or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 SEC. 7. RENEWAL OF COMMITMENT STATUS BY COMMIS14 SION. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter IV of chapter 5 of 

16 title 21, District of Columbia Official Code, is amended 

17 by inserting after section 21–545 the following new sec18 tion: 

19 ‘‘§ 21–545.01. Renewal of commitment status by com20 mission; review by Court 

21 ‘‘(a) At least 60 days prior to the expiration of an 

22 order of commitment issued pursuant to section 21–545 

23 or this section, the chief clinical officer of the Department, 

24 or the chief of service of the facility, hospital, or mental 

25 health provider to which the person is committed may peti-
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1 tion the Commission for a renewal of the order of commit2 ment for that person. For good cause shown, a petition 

3 of commitment may be filed within the last 60 days of 

4 the one-year period of commitment. The petition for re5 newal of commitment shall be supported by a certificate 

6 of a psychiatrist or qualified psychologist stating that he 

7 has examined the person and is of the opinion that the 

8 person is mentally ill, and, because of the illness, is likely 

9 to injure himself or other persons if not committed. The 

10 term of the renewed commitment order shall not exceed 

11 one year. 

12 ‘‘(b) Within 3 days of the filing of a petition under 

13 subsection (a) of this section, the Commission shall send 

14 a copy of the petition and supporting certificate by reg15 istered mail to the person with respect to whom the peti16 tion was filed and by regular mail to the person’s attorney. 

17 ‘‘(c) The Commission shall promptly examine a per18 son for whom a petition is filed under subsection (a) of 

19 this section, and, in accordance with the procedures de20 scribed in sections 21–542 and 21–543, shall thereafter 

21 promptly hold a hearing on the issue of the person’s men22 tal illness and whether, as a result of a mental illness, 

23 the person is likely to injure himself or other persons if 

24 not committed. 
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1 ‘‘(d) If the Commission finds, after a hearing under 

2 subsection (c) of this section, that the person with respect 

3 to whom the hearing was held is no longer mentally ill, 

4 or is not mentally ill to the extent that the person is likely 

5 to injure himself or other persons if not committed, the 

6 Commission shall immediately order the termination of the 

7 commitment and notify the Court of that fact in writing. 

8 ‘‘(e) If the Commission finds, after a hearing under 

9 subsection (c) of this section, that the person with respect 

10 to whom the hearing was held remains mentally ill to the 

11 extent that the person is likely to injure himself or others 

12 if not committed, the Commission shall order the renewal 

13 of the commitment of the person for an additional term 

14 not to exceed one year and shall promptly report that fact, 

15 in writing, to the Court. The report shall contain the Com16 mission’s findings of fact and conclusions of law. A copy 

17 of the report shall be served by registered mail on the per18 son with respect to whom the hearing was held and by 

19 mail on the person’s attorney. 

20 ‘‘(f) If a petition for a renewal of an order of commit21 ment is pending at the expiration of the commitment pe22 riod ordered under section 21–545 or this section, the 

23 Court may, for good cause shown, extend the period of 

24 commitment pending resolution of the renewal petition. 
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1 ‘‘(g) Within the last 30 days of the period of commit2 ment, the chief clinical officer of the Department, or the 

3 chief of service of the facility, hospital, or mental health 

4 provider to which a person is committed, shall notify the 

5 Court which ordered the person’s commitment pursuant 

6 to section 21–545 or this section of the decision not to 

7 seek renewal of commitment. Notice to the Court shall be 

8 in writing and a copy of the notice shall be mailed to the 

9 person who was committed and the person’s attorney. 

10 ‘‘(h)(1) A person for whom the Commission orders 

11 renewed commitment pursuant to subsection (e) of this 

12 section may seek a review of the Commission’s order by 

13 the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, and the 

14 Commission, orally and in writing, shall advise the person 

15 of this right. 

16 ‘‘(2) A review of the Commission’s order of renewed 

17 commitment, in whole or in part, may be made by a judge 

18 of the appropriate division sua sponte and shall be made 

19 upon a motion of one of the parties made pursuant to pro20 cedures established by rules of the Court. The reviewing 

21 judge shall conduct such proceedings as required by the 

22 rules of the Court. 

23 ‘‘(3) An appeal to the District of Columbia Court of 

24 Appeals may be made only after a judge of the Court has 
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1 reviewed the Commission’s order of renewed commit2 ment.’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

4 of subchapter IV of chapter 5 of title 21, District of Co5 lumbia Official Code, is amended by inserting after the 

6 item relating to section 21–545 the following:

‘‘21–545.01. Renewal of commitment status by Commission; review by Court.’’.

Passed the House of Representatives October 6, 

2004. 

Attest: JEFF TRANDAHL, 

Clerk.