2016 US Code
Title 42 - The Public Health and Welfare
Chapter 46 - Justice System Improvement
Subchapter XII-J - Mental Health Courts
Sec. 3796ii-1 - Definitions

(A) of sufficient duration to meet diagnostic criteria within the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association; and

(B) that has resulted in functional impairment that substantially interferes with or limits 1 or more major life activities;

(A)(i) previously or currently has been diagnosed by a qualified mental health professional as having a mental illness, mental retardation, or co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse disorders; or

(ii) manifests obvious signs of mental illness, mental retardation, or co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse disorders during arrest or confinement or before any court; and

(B) is deemed eligible by designated judges;

(A) requires such patient to obtain outpatient mental health treatment while the patient is not currently residing in a correctional facility or inpatient treatment facility; and

(B) is designed to improve access and adherence by such patient to intensive behavioral health services in order to—

(A) has a history of violence, incarceration, or medically unnecessary hospitalizations;

(B) without supervision and treatment, may be a danger to self or others in the community;

(C) is substantially unlikely to voluntarily participate in treatment;

(D) may be unable, for reasons other than indigence, to provide for any of his or her basic needs, such as food, clothing, shelter, health, or safety;

(E) has a history of mental illness or a condition that is likely to substantially deteriorate if the person is not provided with timely treatment; or

(F) due to mental illness, lacks capacity to fully understand or lacks judgment to make informed decisions regarding his or her need for treatment, care, or supervision.