ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Phoenix, Arizona
REVISED
guilty except insane;
offender disposition
Classifies as a class 2
misdemeanor the escape from the Arizona State Hospital (ASH) of a person who
has been ordered by the court to receive mental health services.
Background
ASH states that patients who
escape can be a danger to themselves and the public. Currently, if a patient escapes from ASH, the patient is reported
to law enforcement as a missing person.
Missing person reports are only available to a limited number of law
enforcement agents.
S.B. 1214 makes escape or
attempted escape of a person who has been charged or found guilty of a crime
and has been committed to ASH a class 2 misdemeanor. Classifying escape from ASH as class 2 misdemeanor allows a
statewide warrant to be issued for the apprehension of the patient, allowing
the warrant to be accessed by any law enforcement agent in the State by
conducting an identification or name check.
The fiscal impact of this
legislation is undetermined at this time.
1. Makes a person who has been charged or convicted of a crime and who escapes from ASH guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor.
2. Makes conforming and technical changes.
3. Provides for a general effective date.
Amendments Adopted by Committee
· Eliminates provisions relating to the transfer of jurisdiction from the Psychiatric Security Review Board to the Superior Court over persons found to be no longer mentally ill, but found to still pose a danger to the public.
Senate Action
JUD 3/12/02 DPA 5-0-3-0
Prepared by Senate Staff
March 15, 2002