Kentucky’s civil commitment laws provide a process for seeking involuntary treatment, including hospitalization, for individuals with severe mental illness who are unable to seek care voluntarily.

 
An individual suffering from mental illness can be involuntarily hospitalized if:

1. He or she presents a danger or threat of danger to self, family or others resulting from mental illness;
2. He or she can reasonably benefit from treatment; AND
3. Hospitalization is the least restrictive means of treatment presently available.

 

An individual who would like to initiate this process on behalf of a loved one should contact the Boone County Attorney’s Office.
 

For more information about the process in Boone County, please read on.

 

THE PROCESS IN BOONE COUNTY:

1. A petition for involuntary hospitalization may be filed by a qualified medical professional, police officer, County or Commonwealth’s Attorney, spouse, relative, friend, guardian, or other interested person in the county where the person to be hospitalized (known as the respondent) lives or is present at the time of filing.

   The person filing the petition is known as the petitioner.

   The petition may be obtained from the Boone County Attorney’s Office, where it must be completed before it is filed with the Circuit Court Clerk’s Office.

2. The District Court Judge will review a filed petition to determine whether to issue a mental health warrant. If so, law enforcement will serve the warrant on the respondent and, for petitions filed in Boone County, will transport the respondent to Sun Behavioral Health in Erlanger, Kentucky.
3. Sun Behavioral Health will perform two evaluations. If both evaluations indicate further treatment is necessary, a hearing will be held in Boone County District Court.

   If both evaluations do not indicate that further treatment is necessary, the respondent will be released from treatment and the proceedings will be dismissed.

4. If both evaluations indicate further treatment is necessary, the County Attorney’s Office will present the evaluations to the District Court Judge at a scheduled court hearing, and the Judge will determine if probable cause exists to refer the respondent for treatment longer than 72 hours.

   The respondent will be present at this hearing and will be represented by court-appointed counsel.

   If a Judge finds that probable cause exists, the respondent will be referred to Eastern State Hospital in Fayette County, Kentucky, and Boone County’s jurisdiction ends.

   If the Court finds no probable cause exists to involuntarily hospitalize longer than 72 hours, the proceedings will be dismissed and the respondent will be released from treatment.

5. For individuals transported to Eastern State Hospital, Fayette County has a final hearing to determine the period of hospitalization.