Episode 4 Mental Health Conservatorships

The Britney Case Episode 4: Mental Health Conservatorships 

What happened to Britney Spears? How did her father get control of her whole life? 

Learn how someone gets into a mental health conservatorship. 

Read another excerpt of "The Britney Spears Conservatorship Case" at https://www.BritneyCase.com/  

Disability Rights California advocates for the rights of people with disabilities and has info on conservatorships at https://www.disabilityrightsca.org/ 

The Britney Case is hosted and produced by R.J. Ilyn, with music by The DosMan. Hear more at https://TheDosMan.BandCamp.com

Episode Transcript

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Petris-Short Act of 1967. These could be initiated by the patient's doctor and not by a lawyer or 8 00:00:49,130 --> 00:00:54,100 family member. LPS conservatorships were meant to help a person with a serious mental 9 00:00:54,223 --> 00:00:58,600 health condition receive care while they recovered, for a maximum of one year. At the 10 00:00:58,610 --> 00:01:03,480 end of a year, the conservatee's doctor could reapply to reestablish the conservatorship. 11 00:01:03,645 --> 00:01:08,100 The process of applying for an LPS Conservatorship began with a 3-day long 12 00:01:08,100 --> 00:01:08,150 involuntary hold, followed by a 14-day long involuntary hold. At the end of that period, 13 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:18,700 if a doctor considered the patient in need of further involuntary detention, a review hearing 14 00:01:18,819 --> 00:01:23,578 had to be held. During that hearing, the patient's level of disability would be certified. 15 00:01:23,664 --> 00:01:28,100 The proposed conservatee had the right to request a court hearing or jury trial, to 16 00:01:28,122 --> 00:01:32,000 determine whether or not they were so gravely mentally disabled that they couldn’t care for 17 00:01:32,200 --> 00:01:37,169 themself. When Britney's probate case brought public attention to conservatorships, calls went 18 00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:43,767 out to investigate and reform laws governing them. For example, in September 2022, California state 19 00:01:43,800 --> 00:01:50,467 lawmakers passed bill AB 1663. This legally established "supported decision-making" as an 20 00:01:50,477 --> 00:01:55,450 alternative to probate conservatorship. This is a process in which adults with intellectual, 21 00:01:55,608 --> 00:02:00,435 developmental, dementia, and other disabilities who need support to care for themselves or 22 00:02:00,500 --> 00:02:05,312 their finances, can consult with trusted supporters while making choices about their life, without 23 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:10,700 losing their civil rights. The bill also requires that alternatives to conservatorship are included for 24 00:02:10,718 --> 00:02:15,900 consideration in a petition for conservatorship, and requires courts to provide conservatees with 25 00:02:15,935 --> 00:02:20,157 information regarding the rights they retain. Courts are also allowed to terminate a 26 00:02:20,166 --> 00:02:25,414 conservatorship without a hearing if both the conservatee and conservator agree to termination. 27 00:02:25,705 --> 00:02:30,003 Unfortunately, drawing attention to conservatorships also gave more people the idea 28 00:02:30,031 --> 00:02:35,874 to use them. For example, California lawmakers expanded who qualifies for an LPS mental health 29 00:02:35,900 --> 00:02:43,462 conservatorship in October 2023. Bill SB 43 updated the criteria for "grave disability" to include people 30 00:02:43,481 --> 00:02:49,068 with a "severe substance use disorder", that is, drug or alcohol addiction. Further, the reasons 31 00:02:49,077 --> 00:02:54,503 for conserving someone were no longer limited to basic necessities such as food, clothing, and housing. 32 00:02:54,600 --> 00:02:59,960 Under SB 43, someone can be conserved for being unable to provide for their "personal safety" or 33 00:02:59,967 --> 00:03:05,421 "necessary medical care". Although on its face SB 43 seems like a new way to help people with 34 00:03:05,430 --> 00:03:11,169 severe addiction, the law provides no additional care options or funding. California just made it easier to 35 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:12,459 take someone's rights away. 36 00:03:15,162 --> 00:03:19,764 You can learn more about conservatorships from Disability Rights California, which advocates 37 00:03:19,765 --> 00:03:27,323 for the rights of people with disabilities. Find them online at https://www.disabilityrightsca.org/ 38 00:03:27,446 --> 00:03:33,412 The link is in the show notes. Thank you for listening to “The Britney Case”. 39 00:03:33,763 --> 00:03:38,221 More episodes are available at https://www.BritneyCase.com 40 00:03:38,544 --> 00:03:42,547 The show is hosted and produced by R.J. Ilyn, with music by The DosMan. 41 00:03:42,800 --> 00:03:46,284 Hear more at https://TheDosMan.BandCamp.com