Lessard v. Schmidt  E-mail Print PDF  Lessard v. Schmidt 349 F.
Supp. 1078 (E.D. Wis. 972), vacated and remanded, 414 U.S. 473,
on remand, 379 F. Supp. 1376 (E.D. Wis. 1974), vacated and
remanded, 421 U.S. 957 (1975), reinstated, 413 F. Supp. 1318
(E.D. Wis. 1976)  Key Issue:  "dangerousness... based upon
finding of recent overt act" and provision of "due process
safeguards... that are accorded those accused of crime"
Lessard v. Schmidt transformed mental health law. A federal
district court in Milwaukee struck down Wisconsin's commitment
law as unconstitutional. Setting aside traditional parens
patriae grounds for commitment, the three-judge court set a
narrow dangerousness standard: involuntary commitment was only
permissible when "there is an extreme likelihood that if the
person is not confined he will do immediate harm to himself or
others." Moreover, the court for the first time required that
commitment proceedings provide the mentally ill with all the
protections accorded the criminal suspect -- amon