BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2186
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2186 (Lowenthal)
As Amended August 20, 2014
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |74-0 |(May 8, 2014) |SENATE: |35-0 |(August 25, |
| | | | | |2014) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY : Allows the representative of any facility where a
defendant found incompetent to stand trial is committed, and
specified others, to petition for an order to involuntarily
medicate the defendant, and, upon issuance of that order,
authorizes the involuntary administration of antipsychotic
medication to the defendant when and as prescribed by the
defendant's treating psychiatrist at any facility housing him or
her for purposes of recovering mental competency; makes other
related changes.
The Senate amendments add double-jointing language to
incorporate changes made by AB 2625 (Achadjian) of the current
legislative session, and SB 1412 (Nielsen) of the current
legislative session, should some or all of these bills become
enacted.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Required the court, when determining if the defendant lacks
capacity to make decisions regarding the administration of
antipsychotic medication, to consider opinions in the reports
prepared by the psychiatrist or licensed psychologist
appointed by the court to examine the defendant for mental
competency purposes, if those reports are applicable to this
issue.
2)Required the court, if it finds any one of a list of described
conditions to be true, to issue an order, as specified and
valid for no more than one year, authorizing involuntary
administration of antipsychotic medication to the defendant
when and as prescribed by the defendant's treating
psychiatrist at any facility housing the defendant for the
purpose recovering mental competency.
AB 2186
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3)Provided that if an administrative law judge upholds the
21-day certification by the defendant's treating psychiatrist
that antipsychotic medication has become medically necessary
and appropriate, the court may, for a period of not more than
14 days, extend the certification and continue the required
hearing pursuant to stipulation between the parties or upon a
finding of good cause.
4)Allowed the district attorney, county counsel, or
representative of any facility where a defendant found
incompetent to stand trial is committed to petition the court
for an order, reviewable as specified, to administer
involuntary medication pursuant to specified criteria.
5)Required the court to review the order to administer
involuntary medication at the time of the review of the
initial competency report by the medical director of the
treatment facility and at review of the six-month progress
reports.
6)Allowed the district attorney, county counsel, or
representative of any facility where a defendant found
incompetent to stand trial is committed, within 60 days before
the expiration of the one-year involuntary medication order,
to petition the committing court for a renewal of the order,
subject to the specified conditions and requirements.
Requires the petition to include the basis for involuntary
medication, as specified, and requires notice of the petition
to be provided to the defendant, the defendant's attorney, and
the district attorney. Requires the court to hear and
determine if the defendant continues to meet the required
criteria for involuntary medication and that the hearing be
conducted before the expiration of the current order.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "AB 2186 ensures continuity
of treatment for IST [incompetent to stand trial] patients as
they transition between state hospitals and county jails, and
streamlines reporting requirements to ensure that the individual
is provided with appropriate, necessary, and beneficial mental
health treatment that is consistent with their due process
rights.
AB 2186
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"Any gap in medication coverage can result in the defendant
decompensating to the point of incompetency once again,
necessitating a recommitment in the state hospital. Delays in
treatment not only put the defendant's mental health at risk,
but also result in unnecessary costs to the state for additional
treatment in a state hospital."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Shaun Naidu / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0005438