In re M.B.

228 A.3d 555

IN RE: M.B.

Appeal of: Pennsylvania State Police

No. 366 WDA 2017

Superior Court of Pennsylvania.

Submitted August 28, 2017

Filed February 7, 2020

Andrew J. Lovette, Harrisburg, for appellant.

Joshua G. Prince, Bechtelsville, for appellee.

BEFORE: OLSON, J., DUBOW, J., and STEVENS, P.J.E.^*

OPINION BY OLSON, J.:

The Pennsylvania State Police (hereinafter "PSP") appeal from the trial court's January 30, 2017 order, which granted M.B. relief from his firearms disability and expunged the record of M.B.'s involuntary commitment under 50 P.S. § 7302. We vacate and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.^{1 ,2} On June 6, 2016, M.B. filed a "Petition to Vacate and Expunge Involuntary Civil Commitment" in the Court of Common Pleas of Clearfield County (hereinafter "M.B.'s Petition" or "the Petition"). Within the Petition, M.B. averred that, in the fall of 2003, he became depressed due to "the loss of contact with his former girlfriend, the mother of his newborn son, and his best friend's departure for military service." M.B.'s Petition, 6/6/16, at 2. Because of his depression, on the night of September 23, 2003, M.B. consumed alcohol and pills and, while he was heavily intoxicated, he cut his arms with a knife. Id. ; N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 19-20.

M.B. awoke that night "to people over top of [him] and ... in an ambulance." N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 20. The ambulance took him to Millcreek Community Hospital, where he was admitted at 12:47 a.m. on September 24, 2003. M.B.'s Petition, 6/6/16, at 2; N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 20-21. Doctors at the hospital examined M.B. that morning and moved him to the fourth floor of the hospital, which was the hospital's mental health facility. N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 21-22.

M.B.'s involuntary commitment was initiated by his mother, who completed an Application for Involuntary Emergency Examination and Treatment pursuant to Section 302 of the Mental Health Procedures Act (hereinafter "Section 302 Certification"). M.B.'s Petition, 6/6/16, at 2; N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 22; see also 50 P.S. § 7302 (hereinafter "Section 302").³ In the application portion of the Section 302 Certification, M.B.'s mother wrote:

[M.B.] admitted to taking pills & alcohol. He left a suicide note for me with blood all over it. He doesn't feel loved and has been depressed for approx. 1 yr. He has cut up his arms with a knife & they are bleeding. Suicide note said good bye to his best friend & family. He has been drinking on top of pills & is extremely agitated. Broke up with girlfriend & she had a baby approx. 6-9 months ago. Girlfriend doesn't want anything to do with him.

Section 302 Certification, 9/24/03, at 3.

The Section 302 Certification declares that the county administrator issued a warrant authorizing M.B.'s emergency examination. As a result, at 12:50 a.m. on September 24, 2003, a physician examined M.B. and attested that M.B. "is severely mentally disabled and in need of treatment." Section 302 Certification, 9/24/03, at 5 and 7. Specifically, the "Physician's Examination" portion of the Section 302 Certification declares that the physician made the following observations and findings:

Pt brought by EMS/PSP after becoming violent, cutting him-self & taking 3 Effexor. Pt states he is depressed and states he wants to kill himself. Pt also threatened to kill EMS and PSP Troopers.

...

In my opinion:

[ ] The patient is severely mentally disabled and in need of treatment. He should be admitted to a facility designated by the County Administrator for a period of treatment not to exceed 120 hours.

...

/s _________________________

SIGNATURE OF EXAMINING PHYSICIAN

Section 302 Certification, 9/24/03, at 7.

The Section 302 Certification was then filed in the Erie County Court of Common Pleas. See id. at 1.

Within M.B.'s Petition, M.B. claimed that he "was held for observation for three [ ] days following his involuntary commitment" and then discharged from the hospital. M.B.'s Petition, 6/6/16, at 2-3. Afterwards, M.B. participated in and completed outpatient therapy. Id. at 3. M.B. averred that he "was prescribed [ ] medication at the hospital, which he took as prescribed until he completed the prescription" and that he "has not been prescribed medication [or] required treatment" since that time. Id.

Notwithstanding the Section 302 Certification, M.B.'s Petition declared that the hospital failed to comply with certain procedural mandates that are necessary to involuntarily commit an individual under Section 302. Specifically, M.B. claimed that the hospital failed to advise him of his right to counsel and failed to provide him with: a Form MH-783-B Explanation of Warrant; a Form MH-782 Bill of Rights; and, a Form MH-783-A Explanation of Rights Under Involuntary Emergency Commitment. M.B.'s Petition, 6/6/16, at 2; N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 23-29. As M.B. claimed, 55 Pa.Code § 5100.86 required the hospital to provide him with all of the above before it could involuntarily commit him under Section 302. M.B.'s Petition, 6/6/16, at 2.

M.B.'s Petition contained four counts. Count One claimed that the hospital failed to provide him with the procedural safeguards required by 55 Pa.Code § 5100.86. M.B. thus requested that the trial court "vacat[e] and expung[e his] September 24, 2003 involuntary mental health commitment, pursuant to 18 [Pa.C.S.A.] § 6111.1(g)(2) and Article 1, Section 1 of the Pennsylvania Constitution." Id. at 4-5.

In Count Two, M.B. alleged that he "was never provided a hearing in relation to the [Section] 302" commitment and, yet, the Section 302 commitment "putatively stripped [M.B. of his] fundamental right" to possess a firearm. Id. at 7. M.B. claimed that, "by failing to provide any opportunity for [him] to be heard ..., the deprivation of [M.B.'s] fundamental right to possess firearms for self-defense was arbitrary and violated his right to due process." Id. (emphasis omitted). As such, M.B. claimed that the trial court must expunge his September 24, 2003 involuntary commitment, pursuant to the 14^th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Id. at 7-8.

In his third count, M.B. claimed that his single involuntary commitment was insufficient to strip him of his right to bear arms under the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article 1, Section 21 of the Pennsylvania Constitution. Id. at 8-9. On this basis, M.B. requested that the trial court expunge the record of his involuntary commitment.

Finally, in Count Four, M.B. requested that the trial court grant him state relief from his firearm disability, pursuant to 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6105(f). Id. at 10-11.

PSP answered M.B.'s petition and denied that M.B. was entitled to relief on any of his claims. See PSP's Answer, 7/15/16, at 1-8.

On October 11, 2016, the trial court held a hearing on the matter. At the beginning of the hearing, PSP introduced into evidence an "Application for Extended Involuntary Treatment Pursuant to Section 303 of the Mental Health Procedures Act" (hereinafter "Section 303 Certification"). N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 6-7; see also 50 P.S. § 7303 (hereinafter "Section 303").⁴ According to PSP's proffer, the Section 303 Certification: named M.B. as the patient; was filed on September 25, 2003, in the Erie County Court of Common Pleas; and, declared that the mental health review officer "finds that the patient [is] severely mentally disabled and is in need of" inpatient treatment, at Millcreek, "pursuant to the provisions of section 303 of the Mental Health Procedures Act of 1976 for a period of 20 days." Section 303 Certification, 9/25/03, at 4.

M.B. challenged the Section 303 Certification at the October 11, 2016 hearing. Initially, M.B. noted that, while his name was spelled correctly on two of the four pages, his last name was spelled incorrectly on the other two pages.⁵ N.T. Hearing, 10/11/16, at 8. As a result, M.B. argued, he was "not sure that [the Section 303 Certification was] in relation to" him. M.B. thus objected to the Section 303 Certification on relevancy grounds. See id. Further, M.B. declared that the Section 303 Certification was issued within 24 hours of the original commitment. Id. at 8-9. M.B. argued that, "[s]ince the [Section] 302 [commitment] is good for 120 hours, that seems a little bit suspect, as well as the fact that he was released within 120 hours." Id. at 9. Therefore, M.B. also objected to the Section 303 Certification because there was a question as to "whether it was executed lawfully." Id. Notwithstanding M.B.'s objections, the trial court admitted PSP's Section 303 Certification into evidence. Id. at 11.

During the hearing, M.B. testified regarding: his depression in the fall of 2003; his intoxication and self-injury on the night of September 23, 2003; and, his involuntary commitment at Millcreek Community Hospital, which began at 12:47 a.m. on September 24, 2003. See id. at 17-22. M.B. also testified that, to his recollection, during his commitment: he was never informed of his right to an attorney; he was never provided an attorney; no hearing ever occurred; and, he never saw the Form MH-783-B Explanation of Warrant, the Form MH-782 Bill of Rights, or the Form MH-783-A Explanation of Rights Under Involuntary Emergency Commitment. Id. at 22-27. Further, according to M.B., the first time he discovered "that a 302 petition had been executed in relation to [him]" was in 2012 or 2013, when PSP denied his application to purchase a firearm. Id. at 22.

M.B. testified that he was released from Millcreek Community Hospital on September 29, 2003, or five days after his initial commitment. Id. at 29. Since that time, M.B. testified, he has cultivated a successful career and lives with his long-time girlfriend and her son. Id. at 30-32. M.B. testified that, since his release, he: drinks alcohol socially and does not use illegal drugs; has not had an irrational desire to harm himself or others; and, has never been committed to a facility for mental health reasons.⁶ Id. at...