Watchdog Group Calls for Change to Legal guidelines Governing the Baker Appearing of Kids

When a child is Baker Acted, they are usually taken out of school by law enforcement and taken to one of the more than 100 mental health facilities designated for involuntary admission.

There are currently the equivalent of one hundred Baker Acts instituted for one child every day of the year.

It was reported during the Baker Act Task Force that an estimated 30% of the children who were Baker Pined in Pinellas County did not meet the criteria.

The Mental Health Act currently provides that individuals of all ages, including children, be detained and sent for an involuntary psychiatric evaluation.

A staggering 37,882 involuntary psychiatric examinations on children have been initiated across the state, according to the Baker Act Reporting Center.

The Baker Act was a formidable survivor of the Reformation, and changes are needed to protect children, according to the Citizens Commission on Human Rights.

Appeal to the Baker Act is a deeply grave human rights issue. The person entrusted with this authority must be aware of the effects of the Baker Act, especially on children. “

– Diane Stein, President of CCHR Florida

CLEARWATER, FLORIDA, UNITED STATES, March 9, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ – The Baker Act was followed by decades of abuse and loss of parental rights. And despite demands for change from parents and the press, the abuse continues with tens of thousands of involuntary psychiatric exams on children initiated each year. According to a recent story broadcast by WUSF, “about 100 children involuntarily undergo psychiatric exams in Florida every day under the Baker Act.” [1]

“The Baker Act was never intended for children, and the law has been shown to be abused and abused,” said Diane Stein, president of the Florida chapter of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR). “The Baker Act is used to address behavioral issues that are gross violations of rights.”

When a child is Baker Acted, they are usually taken out of school by law enforcement and taken to one of the more than 100 mental health facilities designated for involuntary admission. In many cases, all of this happens before a parent is even notified that their child is in trouble and needs help. [2]

Understandably, parents and some lawmakers are quite frustrated with the lack of progress in reforming the Baker Act, particularly in dealing with children with special needs. [3] Children with developmental disabilities do not qualify for a Baker Act, but children with autism are routinely treated by Baker Acted. For example, a nine-year-old boy with Asperger’s was detained overnight under the Baker Act. The officer who took him in never addressed the disability, and the boy was very upset when he was not told that he was being taken to the hospital. “All the police told me that I would speak to higher authorities, not that I would go there (to a hospital) and stay there for the night. It was hard. Very rough.” [4]

“The individuals gave the Baker Act the authority that a child must understand the full ramifications of their decision,” said Diane Stein. “In a split second, a child can be classified as lifelong, even if the Baker Act is unfair and the child does not meet the criteria.”

While recent legislative changes require a school principal or their agent to verify that de-escalation strategies have been used before contacting a law enforcement officer in a potential situation under the Baker Act, parents are still not contacted as a solution. According to CCHR, a human rights organization for mental health, any reformation should include the role parents play in directing their child’s well-being. [5]

This year, new bills were tabled in both the House and Senate to address this issue. Senate Bill 590 and House Bill 383, both entitled “Involuntary Trials of Minors,” would amend the law to require notification of parents before a bakery law is initiated on a child. [6,7]

“Requiring that a parent be informed that their child is at risk of being sent for an involuntary psychiatric evaluation would enable parents to take appropriate steps to help their child,” Stein said. “This change is also in line with a provision in the Baker Act that the help of a willing family may be considered as a solution rather than detention of the child.” [6,7,8]

Dedicated to protecting children, CCHR has been committed to restoring and protecting human rights for all Floridians in the field of mental health for decades. For information about protecting your rights as a parent or reporting a Baker Act, visit www.cchrflorida.org or call 1-800-782-2878.

About CCHR: The CCHR was founded in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and the renowned psychiatrist Dr. Thomas Szasz and has set itself the goal of eliminating abuses committed under the guise of mental health and taking patient and consumer protection measures. Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard first made psychiatric imprisonment known to the public: “Thousands upon thousands are confiscated without trial every week because the ‘free world’ is being tortured, castrated and killed. All in the name of ‘mental health’, ”he wrote in March 1969.

Swell:
[1] Dedicated: Florida’s children fell victim to a dysfunctional Baker Act system
https://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/health-news-florida/2020-12-14/committed-floridas-children-caught-up-in-dysfunctional-baker-act-system

[2] Florida’s flawed Baker Act knocks thousands of children out of school
https://www.tampabay.com/news/education/2019/12/10/floridas-flawed-baker-act-rips-thousands-of-kids-from-school/

[3] Legislators, parents frustrated with progress on Baker Act reform
https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2020/01/29/lawmakers–parents-frustrated-over-baker-act-reform-progress

[4] Guard dog: 9-year-old boy with Asperger’s hero Overnight Under Baker Act
https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2019/09/30/watchdog-boy-with-aspergers-held-overnight-under-baker-act

[5] Watchdog: Number of Florida children on the rise under the Baker Act
https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2019/05/29/watchdog–amount-of-kids-in-florida-being-baker-acted-skyrocketing
Florida Bylaws
http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=1000-1099/1002/1002.html

[6] SB 590: Involuntary Investigations of Minors
https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2021/590

[7] HB 383: Involuntary examinations of minors
https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2021/383

[8] Summary introduction
https://www.floridasupremecourt.org/content/download/242846/file/BakerSummary.pdf

[9] The WUSF series examines the fastest growing group after the Baker Act, children
https://www.wboc.com/story/43099197/wusf-series-investigates-the-fastest-growing-group-under-the-baker-act-children

Diane Stein
Florida Citizens Commission on Human Rights
+1 727-422-8820
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March 09, 2021 at 9:54 pm GMT

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