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HomeWelfare and Institutions CodeDiv. 5Pt. 1Ch. 2Art. 6§ 5304 Postcertification Dangerous Patient Remand

§ 5304 Postcertification Dangerous Patient Remand

Welfare and Institutions Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 5304 Postcertification Dangerous Patient Remand

Key Takeaways

  • •If someone with a mental health issue hurts or threatens to hurt others while in treatment, a court can order them to stay in treatment for up to 180 more days.
  • •After 180 days, the person must be released unless officials prove they are still a danger and file a new request to keep them in treatment.
  • •The county where the person is from has to pay for moving them to the treatment place.

Example

A person in a mental health facility gets angry and hits another patient.

The court can order this person to stay in treatment for up to 180 more days because they hurt someone while in care. If after that time they still seem dangerous, officials can ask the court to keep them longer.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 5304 Postcertification Dangerous Patient Remand

(a) The court shall remand a person named in the petition for postcertification treatment to the custody of the State Department of State Hospitals or to a licensed health facility designated by the county of residence of that person for a further period of intensive treatment, not to exceed 180 days from the date of court judgment, if the court or jury finds that the person named in the petition for postcertification treatment has done any of the following: (1) Attempted, inflicted, or made a serious threat of substantial physical harm upon the person of another after having been taken into custody, and while in custody, for evaluation and treatment, and who, as a result of mental health disorder, presents a demonstrated danger of inflicting substantial physical harm upon others. (2) Attempted or inflicted physical harm upon the person of another, that act having resulted in his or her being taken into custody, and who, as a result of mental health disorder, presents a demonstrated danger of inflicting substantial physical harm upon others. (3) Expressed a serious threat of substantial physical harm upon the person of another within seven days of being taken into custody, that threat having at least in part resulted in his or her being taken into custody, and who presents, as a result of mental health disorder, a demonstrated danger of inflicting substantial physical harm upon others. (b) The person shall be released from involuntary treatment at the expiration of 180 days unless the public officer, pursuant to Section 5114, files a new petition for postcertification treatment on the grounds that he or she has attempted, inflicted, or made a serious threat of substantial physical harm upon another during his or her period of postcertification treatment, and he or she is a person who by reason of mental health disorder, presents a demonstrated danger of inflicting substantial physical harm upon others. The new petition for postcertification treatment shall be filed in the superior court in which the original petition for postcertification was filed. (c) The county from which the person was remanded shall bear any transportation costs incurred pursuant to this section. (Amended by Stats. 2014, Ch. 144, Sec. 91. (AB 1847) Effective January 1, 2015.)

Last verified: January 23, 2026

Key Terms

treatmentpetitionpostcertificationjudgmenthospitaldangerhealthcustody

Related Statutes

  • § 5301 Extended Mental Health Treatment
  • § 305 Emergency Minor Custody Authority
  • § 5300.5 Involuntary Mental Health Detention
  • § 5305 Outpatient Commitment Conditions
  • § 5307 Outpatient Danger Hearing Petition

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Welfare and Institutions Code. Section 5304.
View Official Source