Abstract

(Continued from page 361) Court for the Southern District of Iowa, but on December 1, 1975, a three-judge panel there found that the new statute rendered the attack on the previous statute moot. The new statute replaces the county commissions of hospitalization, composed of an attorney, a physician, and the clerk of courts, with a process of judicial commitment. It also modifies the broad criteria for commitment. Commitment is now primarily limited to mentally ill individuals who are unable to make responsible decisions about hospitalization and who are likely to physically harm themselves or others. However, the new statute also permits involuntary commitment of a seriously mentally ill individual who is considered likely to inflict serious emotional injury on another person. An individual sought to be detained under the emergency provisions of the act must first be given a probable-cause hearing at which he has the right to be represented by counsel. The maximum period of emergency detention is 48 hours, excluding weekends and holidays. A commitment hearing must be held within five days of detention. Prior to that hearing, the only treatment that can be administered without the individual’s consent is that necessary to preserve life or