Monday, January 19, 2004

Fairbanks group works to get alcoholics into treatment (Alaska)
Anchorage Daily News story - "A Fairbanks group is turning to the courts to try to force alcoholics into treatment as part of an effort to reduce the city's population of chronic inebriates. A group of social service and legal professionals began working about a year ago to revive a court process called involuntary commitment. While there have been some complications, people involved say involuntary commitment can be an effective tool in the community's push to treat its high population of severe alcoholics. Involuntary commitment is a process outlined in state law that allows spouses, guardians, relatives, health workers or treatment center leaders to petition courts to commit people to treatment if the petitioners can prove the individuals are a danger to themselves or others, or are incapacitated because of drug or alcohol use..."  
  

Advocacy group gains access to juvenile detention center (Texas)
AP story in the Star-Telegram (Dallas/Fort Worth) - "Kerr County officials have agreed to allow a mental health advocacy group to enter its juvenile detention center to investigate complaints of abuse and neglect. Advocacy Inc. had threatened to file a lawsuit after center administrators repeatedly denied it access to the facility. Friday's decision came just a half-hour before Advocacy intended to file the suit..."