A Civil Commitment Trial of an Mental Hygiene Law Article 10 matter: Introduction

I am proud of the fact that I am one of the first private lawyers in New York City to receive a special certification authorizing me to represent detained sex offenders with respect to prosecutions seeking to impose civil management by either long term civil confinement or Strict Intensive Supervision and Treatment (known as SIST) pursuant to the newly enacted article 10 of the New York State Mental Hygiene Law, enacted in 2007.

To resolve the problem of sexually violent predators committing further sexual assaults when they will finish their prison terms, the New York State legislature enacted a series of laws collectively known as article 10 of the Mental Hygiene Law. Upon a finding by a court of competent jurisdiction that "a person is a detained sex offender suffering from a mental abnormality involving a strong predisposition to commit sex offenses, and . . . such an inability to control behavior, that the person is likely to be a danger to others and to commit sex offenses if not confined to a secure treatment facility," said person can be subjected to civil management whereby the person is confined to a secure facility euphemistically referred to as a "psychiatric center." If the chance of reoffending is somewhat less, the court has an option of imposing SIST on the offender.

Over the course of the next few blog entries, I will discuss my representation of a respondent in a petition brought by the state against my client pursuant to Article 10 of the New York State Mental Hygiene Law.