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Vermont committee debates S.193 after Legal Aid expert says placing competency restoration in Corrections is unnecessary
Summary
At an April 16 hearing, Jack McCullough of Vermont Legal Aid told the House Corrections and Institutions Committee that S.193 — which would put competency-restoration services under the Department of Corrections — is unnecessary, raises due-process and clinical-quality concerns, and lacks definitions for services, costs and facility location.
The House Corrections and Institutions Committee heard testimony April 16 on S.193, a bill that would create in‑state competency‑restoration services and place operational authority with the Department of Corrections. Jack McCullough, director of the Mental Health Law Project at Vermont Legal Aid, told the committee "we don't think that this...is a bill that is either necessary or helpful" to the state mental‑health system or public safety.
McCullough, who represents people facing involuntary psychiatric treatment and competency proceedings, said both civil and criminal commitments currently require a judicial finding that a person has a qualifying mental illness and poses a danger. "The treatment that people receive once they've been committed ... is essentially the same," he said, arguing that S.193 does not show how proposed "competency restoration services" would be different or more effective than care…
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