For this post’s purpose, I define a severe mental illness as a chronic medical condition that affects behavior, insight and judgment.
Picture it:
A filthy young man, confused and raging on Market Street, collapses at an intersection and rolls into traffic.
The police arrive.
An officer drags him to the curb and asks him if he has plans to hurt himself or anyone else. The young man shakes his head no.
The officer asks if he knows his way to the local soup kitchen and homeless shelter.
The young man shakes his head, yes.
Because he affirms that he is not an immediate danger to himself or others and claims he knows where to get food and shelter, the officers have no legal basis to mandate treatment.
The police drive off, and the young man rolls back into traffic.
The police cannot stop a sick and confused young man from…
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