Arizona Laws 36-533. Petition for treatment
A. The petition for court-ordered treatment shall allege:
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 36-533
- Action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Authorized transporter: means a transportation entity that is contracted with a city, town or county to provide services pursuant to this chapter and that is either:
(a) An ambulance service that holds a valid certificate of necessity. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Court: means the superior court in the county in this state in which the patient resides or was found before screening or emergency admission under this title. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Criminal history: means police reports, lists of prior arrests and convictions, criminal case pleadings and court orders, including a determination that the person has been found incompetent to stand trial pursuant to section 13-4510. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Evaluation: means :
(a) A professional multidisciplinary analysis that may include firsthand observations or remote observations by interactive audiovisual media and that is based on data describing the person's identity, biography and medical, psychological and social conditions carried out by a group of persons consisting of at least the following:
(i) Two licensed physicians who are qualified psychiatrists, if possible, or at least experienced in psychiatric matters, who shall examine and report their findings independently. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Evaluation agency: means either of the following:
(a) A health care agency that is licensed by the department and that has been approved pursuant to this title to provide the services required of that agency by this chapter. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Grave disability: means a condition evidenced by behavior in which a person, as a result of a mental disorder, is likely to come to serious physical harm or serious illness because the person is unable to provide for the person's own basic physical needs. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- 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.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Mental disorder: means a substantial disorder of the person's emotional processes, thought, cognition or memory. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Patient: means any person who is undergoing examination, evaluation or behavioral or mental health treatment under this chapter. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Persistent or acute disability: means a severe mental disorder that meets all the following criteria:
(a) Significantly impairs judgment, reason, behavior or capacity to recognize reality. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Person: includes a corporation, company, partnership, firm, association or society, as well as a natural person. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Population: means the population according to the most recent United States decennial census. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Professional: means a physician who is licensed pursuant to Title 32, Chapter 13 or 17, a psychologist who is licensed pursuant to Title 32, Chapter 19. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Proposed patient: means a person for whom an application for evaluation has been made or a petition for court-ordered evaluation has been filed. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner: means a registered nurse practitioner as defined in section 32-1601 who has completed an adult or family psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner program and who is certified as an adult or family psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner by the state board of nursing. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- State hospital: means the Arizona state hospital. See Arizona Laws 36-501
- Superintendent: means the superintendent of the state hospital. See Arizona Laws 36-501
1. That the patient is in need of a period of treatment because the patient, as a result of mental disorder, is a danger to self or to others or has a persistent or acute disability or a grave disability.
2. The treatment alternatives that are appropriate or available.
3. That the patient is unwilling to accept or incapable of accepting treatment voluntarily.
B. The petition shall be accompanied by the affidavits of the two physicians who participated in the evaluation and by the affidavit of the applicant for the evaluation, if any. In a county with a population of less than five hundred thousand persons, the petition may be accompanied by the affidavits of one physician and either one physician assistant who is experienced in psychiatric matters or one psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioner who conducted an independent evaluation and by the affidavit of the applicant for the evaluation, if any. The affidavits of the physicians or other health professionals shall describe in detail the behavior that indicates that the person, as a result of mental disorder, is a danger to self or to others or has a persistent or acute disability or a grave disability and shall be based on the physician’s or other health professional‘s observations of the patient and study of information about the patient. A summary of the facts that support the allegations of the petition shall be included. The affidavit shall also include any of the results of the physical examination of the patient if relevant to the patient’s psychiatric condition.
C. The petition shall request the court to issue an order requiring the person to undergo a period of treatment. If a prosecutor filed a petition pursuant to section 13-4517, the petition must be accompanied by any known criminal history of the person and any previous findings of incompetency.
D. The petition shall also include:
1. A statement that in the opinion of the petitioner the person does or does not require guardianship or conservatorship, or both, under title 14 and the reasons on which the statement is based.
2. A request that the court order an independent investigation and report for the court if in the opinion of the petitioner the person does require guardianship or conservatorship, or both.
3. A statement that in the opinion of the petitioner the person does or does not require temporary guardianship or conservatorship, or both, and the reasons on which the statement is based.
4. A request that the court appoint a temporary guardian or conservator, or both, if in the opinion of the petitioner the person does require temporary guardianship or conservatorship, or both.
5. If the person has an existing guardian, a statement identifying the existing guardian and a request that the court consider imposing additional duties on the existing guardian pursuant to Section 14-5312.01.
E. If the petition contains a request for court action pursuant to subsection D of this section, a copy of the petition shall be mailed to any person or agency that is nominated as guardian or conservator or the person who is identified as an existing guardian.
F. A copy of all petitions shall be mailed to the superintendent of the Arizona state hospital.
G. On the filing of a petition for court-ordered treatment, if the patient is not detained in an evaluation agency when the petition is filed, the petition shall contain a statement of any facts and circumstances that lead the petitioner to believe that the proposed patient may be safely transported to the evaluation agency pursuant to section 36-535 by an authorized transporter, if available in the jurisdiction, without the assistance of a peace officer.