Dr. Swanson is Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC. Dr. Tong is Associate Research Scientist, Yale Center for Analytical Sciences, Yale University School of Public Health, New Haven, CT. Dr. Robertson is Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, and Associate Professor, Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University, Durham, NC. Dr. Swartz is Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC.
J Am Acad Psychiatry Law. 2020 Dec;48(4):454-467. doi: 10.29158/JAAPL.200082-20. Epub 2020 Oct 5.
This article presents a survival analysis of long-term risk of firearm-related and other violent crime in a large sample of adults with serious mental illness in Florida, comparing those who received a gun-disqualifying civil commitment after a short-term hold, those who were evaluated for commitment but were released or hospitalized voluntarily, and a third group with no holds or commitments. Among 77,048 adults with a diagnosis of schizophrenia-spectrum disorder, bipolar disorder, or major depression, 42.7 percent were detained for psychiatric examination under Florida's Baker Act; of that detained group, 8.4 percent were involuntarily committed while the remainder were released within 72 hours or agreed to voluntary admission. Over a follow-up period averaging six to seven years, 7.5 percent of the sample were arrested for a violent offense not involving a gun, and 0.9 percent were arrested for a violent crime involving a gun. A short-term hold with or without commitment was associated with a significantly higher risk of future arrest for violent crime, although the study population had other violence risk factors unrelated to mental illness. Risk of gun-involved crime, specifically, was significantly higher in individuals following a short-term hold only, but not in those who were involuntarily committed and became ineligible to purchase or possess guns. Policy implications are discussed.
本文对佛罗里达州大量患有严重精神疾病的成年人进行了一项生存分析，以研究长期与枪支相关的暴力犯罪和其他暴力犯罪风险，比较了在短期拘留后因枪支被剥夺资格而被民事拘留的人、那些因枪支被评估但自愿出院或住院的人以及没有拘留或承诺的第三组人。在诊断为精神分裂症谱系障碍、双相情感障碍或重度抑郁症的 77048 名成年人中，有 42.7%因佛罗里达州贝克法案而被拘留进行精神检查；在被拘留的人群中，8.4%被非自愿拘留，其余人在 72 小时内获释或同意自愿入院。在平均 6 至 7 年的随访期间，样本中有 7.5%的人因不涉及枪支的暴力犯罪被捕，0.9%的人因涉及枪支的暴力犯罪被捕。短期拘留无论是否有承诺都与未来暴力犯罪的高风险显著相关，尽管研究人群存在与精神疾病无关的其他暴力风险因素。具体来说，在经历短期拘留的个人中，枪支犯罪的风险显著更高，但在被非自愿拘留并失去购买或持有枪支资格的个人中，风险并不高。文章讨论了相关政策的影响。
