Revision: Nov. 16, 2023, 8:58 a.m.
2024 SESSION
24-2556.1
09/08
HOUSE BILL [bill number]
AN ACT relative to annulments of records related to involuntary commitments.
SPONSORS: [sponsors]
COMMITTEE: [committee]
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ANALYSIS
This bill creates a process to annul records related to involuntary commitments to the state hospital or secure psychiatric unit.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
24-2556.1
09/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Four
AN ACT relative to annulments of records related to involuntary commitments.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Section; New Hampshire Mental Health Services System; Involuntary Admissions; General; Annulment of Involuntary Admission Records. Amend RSA 135-C by inserting after section 26 the following new section:
135-C:26-a Annulment of Involuntary Admission Records.
I. Any person involuntary admitted to the New Hampshire Hospital or to the secure psychiatric unit pursuant to this chapter or through any proceedings initiated pursuant to RSA 135:17-a, may petition the probate court that issued the commitment order for annulment. No person committed pursuant to RSA 651 shall be eligible to petition under this section.
II. No such petition shall be brought until 5 years from the date of the commitment order. The court may grant or deny an annulment without a hearing, unless a hearing is requested by the petitioner.
III. If a petition for annulment is denied, no further petition shall be brought more frequently than every 3 years thereafter.
IV. When a petition for annulment is timely brought, the court shall require the New Hampshire Hospital or secure psychiatric unit to report to the court concerning any other recent commitments of the petitioner and any other information which the court believes may aid in making a determination on the petition. The department shall charge the petitioner a fee of $100 to cover the cost of such investigation unless the petitioner demonstrates that he or she is indigent. The court shall provide a copy of the petition to the petitioner for the underlying involuntary commitment and permit them to be heard at the court's discretion. The petitioner's request for a court filing fee waiver shall be submitted on a form supplied by the court.
V. The petition shall be granted upon a showing that there have been no additional commitments since the time of the commitment order that the petitioner is seeking to annul or unless the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that such annulment is not in the interests of justice.
VI. Upon entry of an order of annulment:
(a) The person whose record is annulled shall be treated in all respects as if he or she had never been involuntarily committed.
(b) The court shall issue the person a certificate stating that the involuntary admission has been annulled and shall notify the petitioner of the annulled involuntary admission.
(c) The court records and any medical records relating to an annulled involuntary commitment shall be sealed and available only to the person whose record was annulled, his or her attorney, or his or her medical professional.
(d) In any application for employment, license, or other civil right or privilege, or in any appearance as a witness in any proceeding or hearing, a person may be questioned about a previous involuntary commitment only in terms such as "Have you ever been involuntary committed through a commitment order that has not been annulled by a court?"
VII. A journalist or reporter shall not be subject to civil or criminal penalties for publishing or broadcasting:
(a) That a person has been involuntary committed subject to a commitment order that has been annulled, including the content of that record.
(b) That a person has been involuntary committed subject to a commitment order, including the content of such record, without reporting that the record has been annulled, if the journalist or reporter does not have knowledge of the annulment.
VIII. No person or entity, whether public or private, shall be subject to civil or criminal penalties for not removing from public access or making corrections to a report or statement that a person has been involuntary committed subject to a commitment order, including the content of such record, if thereafter the commitment order was annulled. This provision shall apply to any report or statement, regardless of its format.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2025.