Kendra’s Law Will Improve Quality of Life for Every New Yorker
ARLINGTON, VA – The passage of Kendra’s Law ushers in a new era of protection for the severely mentally ill and communities throughout New York. The historic and heroic efforts of Governor George Pataki, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and the State legislature to implement assisted outpatient treatment statewide for individuals with severe mental illnesses will substantially improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers. We commend them on their landmark initiatives and appreciate their soliciting the Center’s counsel in drafting such long-overdue and much needed legislation.
Our admiration and gratitude also is extended to the Webdale family who have bravely fought for better treatment of the mentally ill since Andrew Goldstein, who was not being treated for his illness, pushed Kendra to her death in the New York City subway system earlier this year. We commend their valiant and selfless efforts to eliminate barriers to treatment for New York’s vulnerable psychiatrically ill in the wake of their profound grief. We also deeply appreciate the extraordinary support of Edgar Rivera, who lost his legs after being pushed in front of a subway train by Julio Perez who also suffered from untreated schizophrenia, and his family in getting Kendra’s Law promptly passed. Henry and Nadine Stevens, parents of Charles Stevens who lost the use of his arm after being shot eight times by police on the LIRR because he swung a sword at passengers, also are commended for their bravery in fighting to get a law that will help them care for their son.
New Yorkers can now begin to reduce the casualties of the failure of deinstitutionalization. Instead of eking out a pitiful existence on city streets or in jails and prisons, individuals with the severest forms of mental illness – schizophrenia and manic-depression – will now have the opportunity to regain productive lives in their communities free of the demons that plagued them as a result of an untreated brain disease.
No longer will transgressions against New York’s most vulnerable be tolerated. Kendra’s Law will help prevent decades old scenes of these individuals huddling over steam grates in the cold, animatedly carrying on conversations with invisible companions, wearing filthy, tattered clothing, urinating and defecating on sidewalks or threatening passersby. In addition, Kendra’s Law will help prevent scenes of the mentally ill being carried away on stretchers as victims of suicide or violent crime, or in handcuffs as perpetuators of violence against others.
Kendra’s Law will move New Yorkers closer to the original promise of deinstitutionalization by providing a system where the severely mentally ill can receive needed treatment while living in and contributing to their community.
The passage of Kendra’s Law demonstrates New York cares about its mentally ill. The revolving door of hospital admissions and readmissions and abandonment to the streets with no follow-up care has been closed. Kendra’s Law has opened the door to freedom and renewed hope for the thousands of New Yorkers once held hostage by their psychosis. New Yorkers across the state will reap the benefits of this bold and compassionate law.
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The Treatment Advocacy Center (www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating barriers to the timely and effective treatment of severe mental illnesses. TAC promotes laws, policies, and practices for the delivery of psychiatric care and supports the development of innovative treatments for and research into the causes of severe and persistent psychiatric illnesses, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
