Panel
recommends limited reporting to federal database of those involuntarily
committed and deemed at risk for violence
STATE HOUSE – The 20-member task force that is studying
the nexus of gun rights and mental health law today recommended that Rhode
Island begin submitting limited additional information about mental health
actions to the national database used to screen gun buyers.
After studying the situation this fall and winter, the
Joint Behavioral Health and Firearms Safety Task Force, led by co-chairwomen
Rep. Deborah Ruggiero and Sen. Catherine Cool Rumsey, reviewed the report
it will submit to the General Assembly detailing the many limitations the state
faces in widening reporting of mental health or behavioral health records under
health care privacy laws.
Federal and state health privacy laws ban health
care agencies, such as the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Health,
Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals, from disclosing mental health
records.
However, testimony before the task force indicated that state law could be
changed to allow the court system to submit limited information to NICS.
District Court adjudicates involuntary commitment of individuals to mental
health care, and the task force recommends that the state adopt a new law
allowing the court to forward to NICS the names of those committed in such a
manner if they are also deemed to pose a risk of violence to themselves or
others so they can be included in the database of those who may not buy guns.
Those who seek mental health treatment on their own would not be affected.
The report suggests adopting a statute similar to, but
narrower than Massachusetts’, to limit reporting of involuntary commitment to
only those who pose a substantial risk of violence to themselves or others, not
those who are committed but determined to represent a low risk of violence.
It
also stipulates that only enough information to identify the individual – name,
date of birth, gender and ethnicity– should be submitted, not any information
about the nature of the person’s mental health issue.
“Obviously, we can’t prevent every tragedy, but we should
be trying to prevent the arming of people who have already been brought to the
court’s attention because they are seriously mentally ill, violent and
dangerous. The key is to strike the balance between public safety and the
individual’s right to privacy and freedom. With this change, we would no longer
be turning a blind eye when a person is so ill and violent that they’ve had to
be committed, but we are also allowing the minimum intrusion possible on that
person’s privacy, and not intruding at all on those who seek treatment for
mental illness or substance abuse on their own. Nothing will be a panacea, but
this is a sharply focused improvement in preventing gun violence at the hands
of the mentally ill,” said Senator Cool Rumsey (D-Dist. 34, Exeter, Charlestown,
Hopkinton, Richmond, West Greenwich).
The report indicates that if the General Assembly does
indeed adopt legislation allowing the submission of mental health records to
NICS, it must set up a system through which a person may seek relief of his or
her disqualification. Federal funding is available to support the relief board
process, which could be handled either through a new panel created for that
purpose, or through the courts.
The report favors making the relief board part
of the court system, but says that more work will need to be done by the
General Assembly to determine specifics about the composition of
the board, and disqualification in general.
For example, the Assembly
would need to decide whether relief hearings will be public or private, how
long a person should be disqualified from owning a gun based on specific mental
health issues and what the mechanism should be for notifying individuals that
their name has been sent to NICS for disqualification.
The report includes a recommendation that information on
substance abuse collected outside of criminal proceedings not be reported to
NICS, in part due to legal risk and also because of the potential chilling
effect such reporting could have on individuals’ will to seek treatment. The
task force did not learn of any other states that provide non-criminal records
of substance abuse to NICS.
“One of the recommendations is that Rhode Island submit
mental health data for someone who is adjudicated to be dangerous to him or
herself or others. What we don’t want is the unintended consequence of
discouraging someone who needs mental health treatment from getting it because
they are afraid they will be banned from owning a gun or that their name will
be published on some list somewhere. We believe we’re striking a balance that
avoids disincentives for people to seek treatment, while still preventing those
who are extremely mentally ill and violent from buying guns.
At the end of the
day, whether you’re a member of the National Rifle Association or the Parent
Teacher Association, no one wants those who are seriously mentally ill and
violent to have access to guns,” said Representative Ruggiero (D-Dist. 74,
Jamestown, Middletown.
Additionally, the report includes a recommendation that
the General Assembly review state laws involving weapons and mental health to
ensure that the definitions of terms like “mental incompetent” or
“habitual drunkard” are clearly defined and consistent throughout state law.
The task force will submit the report to the
General Assembly. Legislation would also need to be submitted to enact the
changes recommended within the report.