A judge is ordering the Minnesota Department of Human Services to explain what it is doing to transfer dozens of people from jails to hospitals for mental health treatment.
Scott County Judge Chris Wilton’s order came last week after at least two people sued DHS for violating a state law. Requires agency to transfer inmates to state hospital for mental illness treatment no later than 48 hours after civil commitment.
DHS confirms there are currently 62 people on the “priority admissions” list waiting for a state hospital bed in prisons.
5 VESTIGATES first highlighted the growing crisis in November.
Judge Wilton, who criticized DHS for repeatedly violating the law, now requires the agency to provide monthly reports on each person who is incarcerated instead of in a hospital, including “evidence that the resources used in these cases it shows.”
Scott County Judge Chris Wilton speaks during a hearing on Nov. 30, 2022. Wilton ordered the Minnesota Department of Human Services to explain how to handle violations of a state law that requires the agency to transfer inmates to a state hospital at most. 48 hours after being civilly committed to mental illness treatment. (KSTP/file)
DHS appealed the order this week, saying Wilton did not have the authority to require Commissioner Judy Harpstead to provide monthly reports on its efforts to comply with the 48-hour rule.
In its motion, DHS argued, “the district court exceeded its authority and created a statutory duty for an executive that does not exist anywhere in Minnesota law.”
The judge’s ruling is part of a case involving the commitment of Tuquan Lee, 52, of Savage.
Police arrested Lee in July during an incident outside his home in which he was accused of punching an officer.
A judge later suspended Lee’s criminal case and sent him to DHS for treatment after a doctor diagnosed him with “schizoaffective disorder.”
After a hearing at the end of November, Lee’s brother said his condition was getting worse in prison and pleaded with the state to take action.
“I know that if they work hard enough, if they care about that person, they will find a solution,” Tokheap Ly said. “Not just my brother, for people who have the same situation as him.”
Lee was still waiting for a hospital bed when Judge Wilton last week ordered DHS to find a hospital bed.
“Mr. Lee has not been transported or treated for his mental illness and has instead spent over 1,200 hours in a cell in the Scott County Jail. “Mr. Ly has been denied due process under the United States and Minnesota Constitutions.
Related: Author of “48 Hour Law” urges government to do more to respond to mental health crisis in prisons.
Lee’s attorneys said DHS moved him to a bed at the Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center a day after the judge’s order.
In a statement to 5 INVESTIGATES, DHS blamed its failure to comply with the 48-hour rule on “a nationwide health care staffing crisis, a dramatic increase in the number of civil liabilities in Minnesota, and the lingering effects of this pandemic.”
A spokesperson wrote: “DHS’s facilities are full and they do not have the capacity to immediately accept all the people who need treatment. “DHS will continue to work with counties, community providers and others on strategies to build capacity in the mental health system.”
Judge Wilton ordered DHS to return to court next week to review the agency’s compliance with his order.