CLEARWATER, Fla., Nov. 30, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- So far in 2017, the Florida chapter of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR), a non-profit mental health watchdog organization established by the Church of Scientology in 1969 to expose and eradicate abuses committed under the guise of mental health, has helped secure the safe release of over 260 people who were being unjustly held for involuntary psychiatric examination.
The mental health law in Florida, commonly known as the Baker Act, allows for men, women and children to be sent against their will for involuntary examination at psychiatric wards known as Baker Act Receiving Facilities and held for up to 72 hours during which time, those being held may be drugged without their consent if an emergency treatment order is issued.i
According to the Annual Baker Act report, 194,354 people were sent for involuntary psychiatric examinations during fiscal year 2015/2016 and 32,475 of them were children. This figure has more than doubled since 2001 and recent media reports are confirming the fact that specifically the number of children being Baker Acted is on the rise. ii iii
In order to help address violations of human and civil rights under the mental health law, CCHR mans a Psychiatric Abuse Hotline 7 days a week. All assistance provided is free of charge and those manning the Hotline are trained and certified on the mental health law through the Department of Children and Families.
“Our Psychiatric Abuse Hotline averages almost 80 calls a month from people calling about a friend or loved one who has been Baker Acted and unfortunately all too often the victim did not meet the criteria under the law and should not have been taken into custody and sent to a psychiatric facility,” said Diane Stein, President of CCHR Florida.
In addition to the Hotline, CCHR provides numerous other public services including the documentation of mental health abuses and the filing of complaints on behalf of the victims with the applicable agencies and officials. Since February of 2015, CCHR has filed over 470 complaints concerning abuse within the Florida mental health system that have resulted in investigations and sanctions of the psychiatrists and facilities involved.
The headquarters for CCHR Florida is located in downtown Clearwater. For more information email center@cchrflorida.org.
About CCHR: Initially established by the Church of Scientology and renowned psychiatrist Dr. Thomas Szasz in 1969, CCHR’s mission is to eradicate abuses committed under the guise of mental health and enact patient and consumer protections. It was L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology who said in 1969, “Thousands and thousands are seized without process of law, every week, over the ‘free world’ tortured, castrated, killed. All in the name of ‘mental health.’”
_____________________________
i Emergency Treatment Orders for the Administration of Psychotropic Medications https://www.flrules.org/gateway/RuleNo.asp?ID=65E-5.1703
ii The Baker Act Annual Report
http://www.usf.edu/cbcs/baker-act/documents/annual_report.pdf
iii Baker Act in children on the rise
http://www.gainesville.com/news/20171015/baker-act-in-children-on-rise
Media Contact:
Diane Stein
President, CCHR Florida
727-442-8820
diane@cchrflorida.org
www.cchrflorida.org