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71 Wash. L. Rev. 1187 (1996)
Who are You to Say What My Best Interest is--Minors Due Process Rights When Admiited by Parents for Inpatient Mental Health Treatment

handle is hein.journals/washlr71 and id is 1197 raw text is: Copyright 0 1996 by Washington Law Review Association WHO ARE YOU TO SAY WHAT MY BEST INTEREST IS? MINORS' DUE PROCESS RIGHTS WHEN ADMITTED BY PARENTS FOR INPATIENT MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT Kelli Schmidt Abstract. In State ex rel. T.B. v. CPC Fairfax Hospital, the Washington Supreme Court determined that minors who refuse to consent to inpatient mental health treatment, but are admitted by their parents nonetheless, have a statutory right to a prompt judicial review of the admission decision. This Comment argues that confining mature minors in mental hospitals against their will is a deprivation of both liberty and privacy interests and, as such, stringent due process protections are required, not only by Washington's current statutory scheme, but also by the U.S. and Washington Constitutions. It concludes by stating that the current statutory scheme meets the standards of both the substantive and procedural requirements of constitutional due process but that any statutory amendments that lower these standards are likely to fail to pass constitutional muster. In State ex rel. T.B. v. CPC Fairfax Hospital,' the Washington Supreme Court determined that a minor's2 due process rights were violated when her parents and hospital staff failed to seek judicial oversight of their decision to commit her to an inpatient mental health facility without her consent? The court based its opinion on the specific facts in the case and the intent and language of the 1995 Becca Bill amendments4 to the Mental Health Care and Treatment for Minors Act.5 Because the case was resolved on statutory grounds, the court avoided explicitly reaching the constitutional issue6 of the process due to minors 1. 129 Wash. 2d 439,918 P.2d 497 (1996). 2. For the purposes of this Comment, the terms minor(s), juveniles, youths, and mature minors will be used to refer to youth between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, unless otherwise indicated. 3. CPC Fairfax, 129 Wash. 2d at 451, 918 P.2d at 503. A second statutory violation occurred when she was denied immediate access to counsel and subsequent access to her medical records. Id. 4. 1995 Wash. Laws 942, ch. 312, §§ 2, 52-54, 56, 58 (codified as amended at Wash. Rev. Code chs. 71.34, 13.34 (1996)). 5. Wash. Rev. Code ch. 71.34. 6. CPC Fairfax, 129 Wash. 2d at 441, 918 P.2d at 498. The majority claims to avoid addressing the constitutional issues posed by the case. However, the minority opinion accurately criticizes the majority for nonetheless making strong statements that condemn the 'massive curtailment of liberty caused by the minor's admission to an inpatient Hospital as unconstitutional. Id. at 454, 918 P.2d at 505 (Dolliver, J., concurring and dissenting) (citing majority opinion at 453, 918 P.2d at 504). 1187

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