How Do I Involuntarily Commit a Person for Drug Abuse in North Dakota?
Full Question:
Answer:
Please see the links to the forms below. The following are ND statutes:
25-03.1-08. Application to state's attorney or retained attorney — Petition for involuntary treatment — Investigation by qualified mental health professional.
Any person eighteen years of age or over shall present the information necessary for the commitment of an individual for involuntary treatment to the state's attorney of the county where the respondent is presently located, or which is the respondent's place of residence, or to an attorney retained by that person to represent the applicant throughout the proceedings. The attorney shall assist the person in completing the petition. The petition must be verified by affidavit of the applicant and contain assertions that the respondent is a person requiring the treatment; the facts, in detail, that are the basis of that assertion; the names, telephone numbers, and addresses, if known, of any witnesses to those facts; and, if known, the name, telephone number, and address of the nearest relative or guardian of the respondent, or, if none, of a friend of the respondent. The petition may be accompanied by any of the following:
1. A written statement supporting the petition from a psychiatrist, physician, psychologist, or addiction counselor who is practicing within the professional scope of practice and who has personally examined the respondent within forty-five days of the date of the petition.
2. One or more supporting affidavits otherwise corroborating the petition.
In assisting the person in completing the petition, the state's attorney may direct a qualified mental health professional designated by the regional human service center to investigate and evaluate the specific facts alleged by the applicant. The investigation must be completed as promptly as possible and include observations of and conversation with the respondent, unless the respondent cannot be found or refuses to meet with the mental health professional. A written report of the results of the investigation must be delivered to the state's attorney. Copies of the report must be made available upon request to the respondent, the respondent's counsel, and any expert examiner conducting an examination under section 25-03.1-11. The state's attorney or retained attorney shall file the petition if the information provided by the petitioner or gathered by investigation provides probable cause to believe that the subject of the petition is a person requiring treatment. A state's attorney who determines there are insufficient grounds for filing a petition may refer the applicant to other community resources. A state's attorney's decision not to institute proceedings may be reviewed under section 11-16-06.
25-03.1-09. Review of petition for involuntary treatment — Probable cause established — Respondent notified — Rights.
1. Upon the filing of a petition for involuntary treatment, the clerk of court shall immediately notify the magistrate who shall review the petition and accompanying documentation to determine whether it complies with requirements of section 25-03.1-08 and whether it establishes probable cause to believe the respondent is a person requiring treatment. If probable cause has not been so established, the petition must be dismissed unless an amendment would cure the defect.
2. If probable cause has been established, the magistrate shall cause to be served on the respondent and the respondent's nearest relative or guardian or, if none, a friend of the respondent:
a. A copy of the petition and supporting documentation.
b. A notice informing the respondent of the procedures required by this chapter.
c. A notice of the respondent's right to a preliminary and a treatment hearing when in custody under section 25-03.1-25 and if mental illness or a combination of mental illness and chemical dependency of the respondent is alleged in the petition, or, if not in custody or if in custody and chemical dependency alone is alleged in the petition, the right to a treatment hearing; of the right to be present at the hearings; of the right to have counsel before the hearings and any court-ordered examination; of the right to an independent evaluation; and, if the respondent is indigent, of the right to counsel and to an independent expert examiner, each at the expense of the county which is the respondent's place of residence.
d. Notice that if an independent expert examiner is to be appointed, the respondent must be given an opportunity to select that examiner.
