The humane statutes that help mentally disabled Floridians receive needed treatment are under siege in the Legislature. Florida law gives circuit-court judges the power to determine if a mentally disabled person charged with a crime can be involuntarily committed for treatment before the case is adjudicated. The case is put on hold until the defendant is restored to a stable condition and deemed fit for trial.

In another legal arena, circuit-court judges also have the power to determine if a mentally ill or autistic child in foster care is eligible for treatment provided by the state. A bill in the House would strip Florida's judges of these powers, leaving all such decisions solely up to the Florida Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD).

Removing these judicial powers would harm the justice system and our neediest children. For juveniles and adults in the justice system, it could criminalize mental illness, leaving no option but jail in most cases. The Senate should brake this speeding train.

The APD, a spinoff of the Department of Children & Families, determines the eligibility of mentally disabled Floridians for treatment. But it seems to have picked up a bad habit from its predecessor. The DCF, chronically underfunded, determined eligibility for treatment for the mentally disabled based on its funding criteria more than on clients' need. Children's advocates can cite one lawsuit after another where the DCF's finding of no mental retardation in foster children was overturned by the courts. The APD's record is no better.

The proposed solution? Take away the judges' power over the fates of mentally disabled foster kids and criminal defendants whose worst crime may be not taking medication. If this bill passes, it would be every corrections chief's worst nightmare: jails clogged with even more mentally ill inmates who would be better off in treatment facilities.

Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee considers SB 2012, which includes the proposals to strip judges of the powers cited above. These changes should be removed from the bill, leaving intact judges' ability to help vulnerable Floridians, those suffering from mental disabilities.

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