Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5025 – Minors
(a) Except as otherwise provided, the provisions of this chapter pertaining to the care and release of persons age 18 and older shall apply with the same force and effect to persons under 18 years of age admitted to a designated psychiatric treatment facility or hospital, certified by the Secretary of the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families as being appropriate for the diagnosis, care, and treatment of persons with mental illness under 18 years of age.
Terms Used In Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5025
- Dangerous to others: means that by reason of mental condition there is a substantial likelihood that the person will inflict serious bodily harm upon another person within the immediate future. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
- Dangerous to self: means that by reason of mental condition there is a substantial likelihood that the person will imminently sustain serious bodily harm to oneself. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
- Department: means the State of Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Hospital: means the Delaware Psychiatric Center and any hospital in this State which is certified by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services as being an appropriate facility for the diagnosis, care and treatment of persons with mental conditions 18 years of age or older. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
- Mental condition: means a current, substantial disturbance of thought, mood, perception or orientation which significantly impairs judgment, capacity to control behavior, or capacity to recognize reality. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
- Psychiatrist: means an individual who possesses a valid State of Delaware license to practice medicine and has completed an accredited residency training program in psychiatry. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
- Secretary: means the Secretary of the State of Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. See Delaware Code Title 16 Sec. 5001
(b) All substantive and procedural rights provided to individuals pursuant to this chapter shall automatically transfer to the individual’s parents or legal guardian if the individual is a minor, unless specifically stated otherwise in this chapter. Even when such a transfer of rights occurs, all reasonable efforts shall be made to ensure the relevant rights and procedures are explained to the minor in language understandable to the minor.
(c) A psychiatrist or Emergency Detention of Juveniles Review Board designated by the Secretary of the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families may conduct an independent review of a determination that a person under 18 years of age admitted to a designated psychiatric treatment facility or hospital pursuant to an emergency detention on the basis of the appearance of a mental condition, and whose mental condition causes the individual to be dangerous to self or dangerous to others. Such review may include an examination of the determinations made by juvenile mental health screeners in individual cases or in aggregate. The Department for Children, Youth and Their Families is authorized to establish regulations concerning the process and criteria for such determinations.