The CARE Court proposal does not provide additional housing and does not envision enforcement of long-term prioritization of housing for its graduates.Ī person who fails to obey the court ordered treatment plan may be referred to conservatorship, which would potentially strip that person of their legal capacity and personal autonomy, subjecting them to forcible medical treatment and medication, loss of personal liberty, and removal of power to make decisions over the conduct of their own lives. Housing must be provided through a designated list of existing program that includes interim housing or shelter options that may be unacceptable to an individual and unsuited to their unique needs. That treatment may include an order to take a given medication, including anti-psychotic medications, housing, and other enumerated services. The proposed legislation authorizes judges to order a person to submit to treatment under a CARE plan. Proponents of the plan describe CARE Court in misleading ways as “preserving self-determination” and “self-sufficiency,” and “empower.” But CARE Court creates a state-imposed system of coerced, involuntary treatment. Given the racial demographics of California’s homeless population, and the historic over-diagnosing of Black and Latino people with schizophrenia, this plan is likely to place many, disproportionately Black and brown, people under state control.
It seems aimed at facilitating removing unhoused people from public view without actually providing housing and services that will help to resolve homelessness. It applies generally to those the bill describes as having a “schizophrenia spectrum or other psychotic disorder” and specifically targets unhoused people. In fact, the bill creates a new pathway for government officials and family members to place people under state control and take away their autonomy and liberty. Human Rights Watch’s Opposition to CARE Court (SB 1338) as amended June 16, 2022, July 22, 2022ĬARE Court proponents claim it will increase up-stream diversion from the criminal legal and conservatorship systems by allowing a wide range of actors to refer people with schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders to the jurisdiction of the courts without an arrest or hospitalization. We urge you to reject this bill and instead to take a more holistic, rights-respecting approach to address the lack of resources for autonomy-affirming treatment options and affordable housing.
CARE Court promotes a system of involuntary, coerced treatment, enforced by an expanded judicial infrastructure, that will, in practice, simply remove unhoused people with perceived mental health conditions from the public eye without effectively addressing those mental health conditions and without meeting the urgent need for housing. Human Rights Watch has carefully reviewed SB 1338, the amendments to SB 1338, and the proposed framework for the Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment (CARE) Court created by CalHHS, and must respectfully voice our strong opposition. Re: Human Rights Watch’s Opposition to CARE Court (SB 1338) as amended June 16, 2022 Capitol Office, 1021 O Street, Suite 5650
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