In the Matter of the Civil Commitment of: L.B. v. Richard L. Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical CEnter

Indianapolis, Indiana civil litigation lawyer represented Respondent in a civil-commitment case.





After experiencing "worsening, intensifying voices" and "wanting to escape the torture," L.B. threw his television out a window, shaved his head, and burned down his house. Tr. Vol. II, pp. 9-10. Police found L.B. on foot in a neighboring county. A few days later, he was admitted to the Richard L. Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center (Hospital). The Hospital determined L.B. to be mentally ill, dangerous, and in need of immediate restraint. It therefore filed a petition for his regular commitment.

The Hospital does not meaningfully argue against requiring a competency determination before a trial court accepts a civil-commitment respondent's waiver of the right to counsel. Instead, it claims the trial court's failure to do so was harmless because "the evidence still supports a finding that L.B. suffers from a mental illness and is both gravely disabled and a danger to himself." Appellee's Br. p. 9. "[I]nvalid waivers of counsel are not subject to a harmless error analysis." Bumbalough, 873 N.E.2d at 1102. We therefore reverse the trial court's judgment and remand for a new commitment hearing.