State Mental Hospital Placement Delays Violate Minnesota Law
Minnesota’s Department of Human Services (DHS) has repeatedly violated a state law requiring transfer of civilly committed inmates to state-run mental health facilities within 48 hours. A 5 INVESTIGATES review of court records revealed persistent violations over the past two years, with judges recently issuing sharp rebukes of the agency’s noncompliance. Scott County Judge Christopher Wilton stated in September: “I’ve never seen a statute where there’s just overt failure to comply, and it’s not even close.”
Anthony Blake Swope, civilly committed in June following a psychotic episode, waited 57 days in Scott County Jail before receiving transfer to a state hospital. His mother, Cheryl Heath, stated he was “screaming to the top of his lungs” that conditions would worsen. Swope ultimately transferred only after his attorney filed a lawsuit against DHS. Another inmate, Brandon Charles Hegg-McLaughlin, waited approximately 60 days after being found incompetent to stand trial with diagnosed developmental disabilities and substantial psychiatric disorders. In September, a third inmate waited nearly a month in jail before being transferred.
Capacity and Staffing Constraints
DHS Executive Medical Director KyleeAnn Stevens attributes violations to shortages of mental health beds, citing four main factors: increasing civil commitment referrals, delays moving stabilized patients out of state hospitals, staffing shortages, and lingering COVID-19 capacity impacts. The agency manages primarily Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center (AMRTC), a high-security facility, and Community Behavioral Health Hospitals. Referrals from jails to DHS increased from 111 in 2014 to 340 so far this year, according to court documents. A 2016 Office of the Legislative Auditor report warned that “secure inpatient beds” were already “inadequate” to meet demand six years ago, and predicted that placement delays “may have increased county jails’ risks, potentially affecting the health or safety of the patient, fellow jail inmates, and jail staff.”
Judicial and Advocacy Response
Scott County Judge Colleen King stated in a recent hearing that “there are countless other individuals who are languishing in jails” and emphasized “wrongful incarceration is not the United States of America.” Judges now require DHS to either locate beds or provide explanations for inability to comply. Sue Abderholden, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Minnesota, argues the law itself has unintended consequences, redirecting mental health resources away from non-incarcerated people awaiting treatment. Sheriff Luke Hennen reports his staff faces constant strain managing patients while stabilizing medications in jail settings.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://kstp.com/5-investigates/commitment-crisis-dhs-violating-minnesotas-48-hour-law-for-mental-health-treatment/