albany woman forcibly injected with drugs after protesting DMV regulations
i guess someone should tell her to stop bitching, this is the US of A...bad things can't and don't happen to anyone, tell that to her.
this is really crazy. i think you could classify this as tyrannical.
http://www.theempirejournal.com/alba...injected_w.htm
POLITICAL PRISONER OR CRIMINALLY INSANE?
Albany Woman Forcibly Injected With Drugs After Protesting Regulations of DMV
© THE EMPIRE JOURNAL
Albany residents beware.
What happened to Bliss Alexandra could happen to you.
Anger police chief James Turley and you might end up at a state hospital for the violent and criminally insane, hundreds of miles away from your family and friends, forcibly injected with mind altering drugs.
Bliss Alexandra who is also known as Darlene Early---or Darlene Barely as the Albany Police Department call her, was returned to Albany on Wednesday, Dec. 8 after completing an involuntary stay at Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center in Manhattan, ordered by Albany City Court judge Thomas Keefe after she exercised what she thought were her constitutional rights.
She is scheduled to appear in Albany City Court before Keefe Thursday, Dec. 9.
After Alexandra called the Albany Department of Public Safety to complain about her personal property being towed by police from a private driveway, Chief Turley responded by telling her he was either going to arrest her or have her removed to the Capital District Psychiatric Center.
And that he did.
Not only did he cause her arrest on three felony charges but caused her to be involuntarily committed with serial killers and rapists and subjected to the forced injection of antipsychotic drugs.
Her alleged crime??exercising free speech on private property.
The legal scholar and constitutionalist, with no apparent mental illness history, was originally committed to Kirby in September for a 90-day evaluation by Judge Keefe because he claimed two examiners from the Albany County Correctional Facility had determined she had no comprehension of the charges against her or of court procedure because she refused to discuss the case with them.
Kirby, operated by the state Office of Mental Health as is CDPC, is a maximum security, 168 bed hospital on Ward??s Island. Opened in 1995, it provides secure treatment and evaluation for the forensic patients of courts of New York City and Long Island.
But Alexandra isn??t in the court system of New York City nor was she violent nor were her alleged crimes of a violent nature.
She a resident of Albany County which is served by the Mid-Hudson Psychiatric Center in Poughkeepsie.
And then there??s CDPC in their own back yard at 75 New Scotland Ave.
So why was she removed to Kirby?
Albany Police have charged Alexandra with three felony counts of second degree possession of a forged instrument but not only do the arrest reports and felony complaints allegedly contain false statements and information, but there appear to have been egregious violations of her constitutional rights as well as statutory law in her involuntary commitment and medication including an alleged falsified court order and denial of her right to counsel.
Nagging questions exist about why and how she was removed from the Capital District area, her family, friends and legal counsel and sent to Kirby and the ensuing alleged rights violations.
Perhaps her knowledge of the Constitution and the court system is exactly why she was arrested in the first place-------and her challenge of state??s Department of Motor Vehicles and what she claims is the state??s unconstitutional regulation of the right to travel.
READY TO PUBLISH FINDINGS
Alexandra has undertaken five years of research into the issue and was ready to publish her findings. In an interview with The Empire Journal while inside Kirby, Alexandra said that since 1995 she has been communicating with the Department of Motor Vehicles and former Albany police chief Robert Wolfgang on the ability of people to travel in their automobile in alternative ways without paying fees to DMV.
She says she encountered no problem with Wolfgang who had communicated with her amicably but that when Turley became chief, the congeniality of the police agency ceased.
Although the state Office of Mental Health claims that treatment in their facilities is carried out with respect for each patient??s privacy and rights, Alexandra says her rights were violated from the getgo and a review of the records, obtained with her consent, appear to support her claims and give cause for an immediate independent review of policy chief James Turley, the Albany Department of Public Safety and the state Office of Mental Health of which Sharon Carpinello is the commissioner.
Carpinello??s husband, Anthony Carpinello, is a state Supreme Court justice in the Appellate Division, Third Department.
As part of her protest against of what she claims is the state??s unconstitutional regulation of travel, Alexandra allegedly displayed two cardboard license plates on a parked car in addition to a mock registration sticker and inspection sticker. Police claim they are forged instruments that were in her ??possession? but according to the arrest reports and complaints filed by Albany police, there is no allegation of or proof that Alexandra operated the vehicle on the public highway or that the vehicle was even in her ??possession?, being parked on property across the street from her residence.
Since her forced incarceration and hospitalization, Alexandra has now been evicted from her residence, although it is unclear if any eviction proceedings were legally conducted.
Political prisoner and dissident or criminally insane?
Darlene Early, or Bliss Alexandra as she is professionally known, is an author, mediator and paralegal. She is the owner and operator of The People??s Alternative in Albany, an agency founded in 1990 offering paralegal services. In 1993, she co-authored a self-help legal book with attorney Robin Leonard, published by the nationally known self-help organization, Nolo Press.
She has passed her ??fitness? test after been forcibly injected with drugs for nearly 60 days, a combination of drugs that physicians contacted by The Empire Journal have labeled as a ??lethal combination? and a ??toxic cocktail actually equivalent to attempted murder?.
With the 90-day commitment order expiring Thursday, Dec. 9, and found to be competent, the state was required to return her to Albany County.
Alexandra was snatched from the doorstep of her Second Avenue residence by two plainclothes police officers on Aug. 26, a day after she had filed a complaint with the Albany County district attorney??s office against Police Chief Turley for what she said constituted threats and an intimidating manner with threat of unwarranted arrest.
The district attorney??s office has refused to respond to requests for information by The Empire Journal regarding the matter
Those alleged threats by Turley, captured on audiotape by Alexandra, occurred after Albany police had towed the parked vehicle from the private driveway and impounded it but had allegedly not served any papers on Alexandra indicating the cause for the towing.
On Aug. 20, according to Alexandra, two individuals in plain clothes, traveling in an unmarked car, had arrived at her Second Avenue apartment at approximately 7 p.m.. She said they pounded on the door, threatening to break it down if she didn??t open it.
??Police!? she said they yelled, ??we know you??re in there, come out or we will break down the door!?.
Alexandra, 60, a small woman, claims the two officers, later identified to be patrol officers Jeffrey DeMarco and W.F. Warner, did not offer any explanation for their actions and did not show any warrant. She said she was startled and scared and therefore refused to open the door to them.
HORRIFIC NIGHTMARE
And that was only the beginning of what was to become a horrific nightmare for Alexandra.
Across the street from Alexandra??s residence in a private driveway was parked a 1991 Toyota sedan. She says the vehicle was parked there with permission of the owners.
The ensuing arrest reports written by Patrol Officers Jeffrey DeMarco and W.F. Warner claim the vehicle was parked on the street at 365 2nd Ave. but Alexandra and witnesses dispute that, saying it was parked in the private driveway at 369 2nd Ave. Because the vehicle was parked on private property with permission of the property owner, police had no legal right to tow the vehicle and cause it to be impounded, Alexandra says. Even if the property owner had complained, police still could not legally tow the vehicle from private property, only the property owner could legally have it towed.
And then there??s the version of Albany Department of Public Safety spokesman Det. James Miller who claims it was parked at the curb on Central Avenue. Miller concedes that police would have no legal authority to tow a vehicle from private property unless it had been ??dumped? there as the result of a police chase.
Miller responded to The Empire Journal??s request to Chief Turley about the matter, saying that he would answer questions about the incident and not to contact Chief Turley again.
Miller concedes there was no police chase of Alexandra and that police officers did not see Alexandra operating the vehicle on the highway or in possession of the vehicle nor did any citizen sign a complaint regarding her display of the cardboard and paper stickers. No traffic tickets were issued.
Witnesses to the arrest of Alexandra state that at no time during they observe Alexandra make any statements to the police.
Miller maintains the vehicle was towed because it was parked at the curb on Central Avenue but when The Journal told Miller there were witnesses who said the vehicle was on private property, Miller said he would have to check the tow log and to call back.
However, Miller refused to answer subsequent calls by The Journal about the matter, saying that he was busy.
According to the arrest reports, DeMarco was the arresting officer with Warner assisting in the arrest of Alexandra at 7:03 p.m. on Aug. 26 at 394 2nd Ave. The report states that no warrants were executed, no Miranda rights were given and that the defendant??s condition was normal.
However, the police seem to have a problem with who the defendant is. According to the documents, the mental health examiners found that Alexandra did not ??understand? the charges against her because she repeatedly told them her name was and is not ??Darlene Barely?..
The arrest report, the felony complaints and even the court orders committing Alexandra all contain the name Darlene Barely.
And, because she told the police the reports contained false information, that her name was not Darlene Barely and she repeatedly told them her rights were being violated, she was deemed uncooperative and ??unable to understand the charges against her?
Although the police reports admit that she was not given her Miranda warnings prior to questioning and defendants are constitutionally guaranteed the right to remain silent and that anything they say can and will be used against them in a court of law, Alexandra was rendered ??mentally incompetent? because she refused to answer their questions.
In the Supreme Court landmark case of Miranda v. Arizona, the U.S. Supreme Court established proper police procedure in the conduct of interrogations, the character of voluntary or involuntary confessions and their admissibility in state trials.
Miranda clearly established that regardless of the circumstances under which it occurs, regardless of who the examiners are and regardless of who the suspects are, custodial interrogation is inherently coercive---psychologically if in no other way. Custodial interrogation makes any statements obtained from suspects during this period ??compelled? and thus not ??voluntary? beyond a reasonable doubt.
Although Albany police are now claiming that the vehicle they allege belongs to Alexandra was parked on the street, Officer Warner??s incident report signed Aug. 20 under the warning that ??false statements are punishable as a crime? indicates that the incident occurred at the ??side 365 2nd Av., Albany?, not on the street as later claimed.
According to Alexandra and others, there is no driveway at 365 2nd Avenue.
Warner??s report says the vehicle was last registered to a male who ??apparently sold vehicle to (the defendant) sometime this past April. Attempts to contact (the alleged seller) thus far have been unsuccessful? indicating that the police had no proof in hand at the time of arrest that the defendant had ??possession? of the car. The report says the ??vehicle was towed and hold was put on it per Sgt. Basil?.
CREDIBILITY OF POLICE REPORTS AN ISSUE
But according to the arrest report filed on the date of arrest on Aug. 26 by DeMarco, not only was the defendant??s name wrong but so was the date of birth. The arrest was listed as a ??crime in progress? at 365 2nd Ave. although the vehicle had been towed six days earlier and on the property report, the location of the incident is listed as a different address raising questions as to the credibility, legal sufficiency and veracity of the police reports.
That??s only the tip of iceberg.
On Aug. 20, after the initial confrontation by the police, Alexandra called Turley to report that she had felt threatened by his officers and that they had taken personal property unlawfully and she wanted it returned.
She was then contacted by Officer Kurt Ricky and informed that she had to appear at the city police station to sign a release for the car. She refused saying that they took it wrongfully, they should return it and that she wasn??t signing any release.
After Ricky contacted her, she called Turley on Aug. 24, two days before her arrest, to register a complaint about Ricky??s demand.
She audiotaped the call.
Turley told her to stop calling the police department or he would send ??someone over to arrest you and we??re going to bring Mobile Crisis. You can??t do what you??re doing with your car, it??s illegal?.
??I??m not doing anything with the car. It??s sitting in a private area?. She told him he had no authority to take the car and with that, Turley??s response was ??if you call again, I??m sending an officer with Mobile Crisis and either take you to CDPC or to jail?.
Mobile Crisis is a ??team? from the Capital District Psychiatric Center. According to their website, the ??team? is a mobile response to individuals experiencing a psychiatric emergency throughout Albany County. It provides access to persons in mental or emotional distress and to agencies and to individuals who are dealing with individuals in such distress.
It appears perhaps Chief Turley is the one who was in distress. He claims that she had called the department six or seven times about the car being towed.
Alexandra didn??t call the police department again. Instead she filed a formal complaint with the Albany County District Attorney??s office against Turley the next day.
A day later, on Aug. 26, she was arrested.
But she wasn??t taken to CDPC, instead she was immediately incarcerated, arraigned on Aug. 27 on felony charges without legal counsel being present.
On Aug. 30, as allowed by law, a friend attempted to file a writ of habeas corpus at the Albany City court clerk??s office and was not allowed to do so. Although state law requires that a preliminary hearing be held within 72 hours for a person incarcerated without bail to determine the sufficiency of the charges, no hearing was held.
According to Carl R. Frederick, president of the American Pro Se Association of Plainfield, NJ, a friend of Alexandra??s attempted to retain legal counsel for her. Frederick, also a friend and business associate of Alexandra??s, says that between Sept. 2 and 5, Albany attorney Michael Feit engaged in several conversations with Albany police and district attorney??s office on Alexandra??s behalf concerning ??obvious overcharging? and requests that the charges be dismissed or at least reduced to a misdemeanor so bail can be set, defendant released and a trial date set.
Frederick says that Feit told him that it was ??very apparent to him there was personal animosity against the defendant by officials and he got none of the cooperation he normally gets and certainly expected under the circumstances?.
NOT PROVIDED COPIES OF CHARGES
Although state Criminal Procedure Law requires that defendants be informed of the charges against them, as of Sept. 9, Alexandra says she had not been provided with copies of the charges against her including any alleged witness statements or informed of the probable cause that police were using to cause her arrest.
Each of the three complaints filed against ??Darlene Barely? under penalty of perjury by Patrol Officer DeMarco state that at the time of arrest, she had in her possession the alleged forged instruments and that the sources of his information are oral statements made to him by Alexandra and/or from information obtained from witnesses whose depositions were attached to the complaints.
Alexandra resided at 394 2nd Ave where she was arrested but the vehicle was parked in the driveway at 369 2nd Ave., property neither owned or leased by Alexandra.
There were no witness depositions attached to the complaints and the police have readily admitted as have court examiners that Alexandra refused to speak with them making it improbable that police can now claim that Alexandra made any incriminating statements.
On Aug. 31, Albany city court Judge Keefe signed an order for the ??examination? of Darlene Barely.
Robin Siegal, director of the Albany County Department of Mental Health thereafter assigned Michelle Gerber, a psychologist employed by the Albany County Correctional Facility, and David J. Kelley, coordinator of the mental health unit at the facility to examine Alexandra. Neither one is a licensed physician and neither one was familiar with Alexandra. Although no past history of mental treatment or any allegation of violent behavior was presented, Gerber and Kelley filed reports with the court determining Alexandra was ??incapacitated?, thereby causing her involuntary hospitalization at Kirby, a maximum security facility for the criminally insane and violent.
Despite CDPC being in their backyard, there is no indication that Alexandra was transported there for an examination by licensed physicians.
According to reports filed with the court by Gerber, a licensed psychologist since only May, 2004, and Kelley, ??Barely? said to be an aka for Darlene Early but with an incorrect birth date for Alexandra, was ??interviewed on Sept. 3 and was ??not cooperative?. She told the interviewers that her arrest and incarceration were ??invalid? because her name was not Barely. She demanded a written statement from the examiner with the date, time, location and purpose of the examination along with the signatures, titles and employer of the examiner.
According to Gerber??s report, Gerber seemed to find that an unreasonable request by Alexandra.
After receiving the documents, Gerber reports that ??Ms Barely stated? that ??you two have a problem. I??m not the person written here (pointing to the document with ??Darlene Barely?? written on it). Therefore, I have nothing to say about her and we??re done?.
Gerber told the court that in her initial contact with the jail mental health unit on Aug. 27, she had insisted that her name was ??Darlene Early? and she therefore was in jail ??under protest?? and for no reason. As is her constitutional right, Alexandra refused to discuss her personal history with Gerber and Kelley, and refused to discuss the charges and was not willing to discuss the legal situation or process with them.
Claiming that she was paranoid, because Alexandra chose to exercise her Miranda rights, Gerber and Kelley, neither of whom are physicians or board certified, told the court that the professional paralegal was not able to acknowledge the charges or her legal situation and was not ??expected to be able to work productively with an attorney to assist in her own defense?. They claimed that the legal scholar lacked the ability to comprehend the legal system and courtroom procedures and was an incapacitated person.
Kelley??s observation was that ??Ms. Barely? was alert but not cooperative with the evaluation?. He said her mood was ??angry and defiant?
AUDIOTAPE PROVES TURLEY THREAT
At that time, Alexandra had been incarcerated for more than a week and had allegedly still not been provided copies of the charges against her and related paperwork despite her requests. Kelley said that her statement that Albany police chief Turley had told her he was going to ??throw me in a mental institution?? constituted significant paranoia. However, as the audiotape of the conversation between Turley and Early clearly demonstrates, Alexandra was absolutely correct in her statement. Both psychologists were distressed and disturbed that Alexandra refused to discuss the charges against her with them.
Was Alexandra paranoid in thinking that Turley was trying to have her committed to a mental institution when she has him captured on audiotape making that exact statement?
But Alexandra??s problems had still only just begun. Within a matter of days, in violation of Mental Hygiene Law, Criminal Procedure Law, Corrections Law and yes, the U.S. and New York State Constitutions, it was ordered that she be forcibly administered a myriad of antipsychotic drugs in an attempt to ??rehabilitate? her so that she could be returned to Albany to face her criminal charges. The 15 drugs, some in dosages up to 4000 mg daily, are known to cause cancer, liver damage and other serious side effects.
A physician contacted by The Empire Journal who spoke on condition of anonymity said that ??for any individual, especially one who has never been exposed to any these drugs to be given a toxic cocktail such as this is actually equivalent to attempted murder, in my opinion?.
??We are operating in the same environment as occurred in Nazi Germany and China. Dissents are given psych diagnoses as a way to lock them up?, the physician said. ??However, I predict, merely from knowing the side effects of these drugs and as listed in the Physician??s Desk Reference, that they are actually trying to kill this woman. The judge is also practicing medicine without a license by deciding that she should be involuntarily committed and drugged?..
On the basis of Gerber??s and Kelley??s reports, Albany city court judge Thomas Keefe signed a 90-day temporary order of observation on Sept. 9, ordering that ??Darlene Barely? be committed to the custody of the state commissioner of the Office of Mental Health for care and treatment in an ??appropriate? facility of the OMH as designated by Carpinello.
However, according to attorney Michael Feit, Judge??s Keefe??s order is an alleged false document.
Perhaps intentionally false in order to claim the court and city complied with state law and Alexandra??s constitutional rights when they did not.
Keefe??s order in which he says that it appears to his satisfaction that ??Darlene Barely? lacks the capacity to understand the proceedings against ??him? or to assist in ??his? own defense as a result of mental disease, claims that she was represented by counsel and that counsel was given copies of the examination reports of Gerber and Kelley and that no motion for the requisite hearing had been made.
However, Feit says although he consulted with Alexandra but hadn??t been officially retained, Keefe signed the order before Feit had even received the Gerber/Kelley reports and before he could request any hearing. Feit has advised Frederick that Keefe has acknowledged on the record in open court that he signed the temporary order without hearing and before counsel had received the reports which constitutes a violation of the law and safeguards afforded Alexandra.
The attorney says that despite the judge??s acknowledgement that the order was issued unlawfully, the assistant district attorney, on the record, refused to dismiss or reduce the charges against Alexandra.. A transcript of the court proceeding is said to exist.
The courts have consistently held that ??the accused is guaranteed that he not stand alone against the state at any stage of the prosecution, formal or informal?, in court or out, where counsel??s absence might derogate from the accused??s right to a fair trial?.
The Court of Appeals has held that it is firmly established that the due process rights of a mentally ill patient must be fully honored prior to administration of medication over their objection?.
NO PREVIOUS RECORD
Alexandra was transported to Kirby on Sept. 11 although she had no previous arrest record, allegations of violent behavior or mental illness.
Under the direction of Richard Miraglia, director of forensic services, the Bureau of Forensic Services in the state Office of Mental Health (OMH) coordinates the placement of persons and oversees the delivery of inpatient services to individuals committed to the custody of OMH commissioner Carpinello pursuant to various sections of Criminal Procedure Law and Correction Law.
The Bureau of Forensic Services is responsible for coordinating the delivery of mental health services to individuals involved with the state??s criminal justice system.
OMH forensic facilities, with a total bed capacity of 695, include the Mid-Hudson Forensic Psychiatric Center in Poughkeepsie, bed capacity 264; Central New York Psychiatric Center at Marcy, bed capacity, 206. and Kirby with 168.
Mid-Hudson is designed to serve the upstate counties including Albany.
Kirby houses a group of men who have committed some of the most notorious and gruesome crimes in New York City??s history including Daniel Rakowitz, former East Village man, who admitted to chopping up his ex-lover, boiled her remains in a soup and serving the soup to the homeless. He has been in Kirby since 1991 after being acquitted by murder by reason of insanity.
On Sept. 30, James Hicks, acting director of clinical services at Kirby, allegedly acting contrary to the provisions of the state??s administrative law addressing the Office of Mental Heath and rights of patients, filed an order to show cause with the New York Supreme Court, why Alexandra should not be forcibly administered medications against her will. He based his request on affidavits of Paul Sanon, MD, and Ana Rodriguez, MD.
Rodriguez is not a licensed physician but rather a resident, according to the state Department of Health. . Although Mental Hygiene Law states that a patient must be examined by two board certified physicians before an order to forcibly administer drugs can be issued, neither Sanon nor Rodriguez are board certified according to the New York State Department of Health and professional licensing/disciplinary division of the state Education Department.
In addition, Rodriguez stated in her written report that Alexandra had been interviewed in the presence of an attorney from the Mental Hygiene Legal Services. This was later disputed on the record at a court proceeding by Mary Beth Feerick, a MHLS attorney indicating that Rodriguez??s report contained alleged false statements..
Rodriguez??s report claims that Alexandra lacked the capacity to refuse medication because she said she had no mental illness and that her rights were being violated. Rodriguez further claimed that Alexandra had disorganized and paranoid thinking because she told Rodriguez that she had ??the constitutional Miranda rights and the right to remain silent?.
Rodriguez??s report is signed by Cristina Musat, acting clinical director at Kirby, a certified psychiatrist with the American Board of Neurology and Psychiatry. However, there is no indication in Rodriguez??s report that Musat was present during Rodriguez??s examination of Alexandra.
The state Department of Health says that Musat has only a limited license in medicine as she is not a citizen of the United States.
Article 9 of Mental Health Law provides that patients who object to any proposed medical treatment or procedure may not be treated over their objections except emergency treatment where the patient is presently dangerous and the proposed treatment is the most appropriate.
Upon a patient??s objection to involuntary and forcible injection of drugs, Mental Hygiene Law requires that an independent review be conducted by a physician who specializes in psychiatry and is not an employee of the facility. In order to administer antipsychotic medication to an involuntarily committed patient over objection, there must be a judicial determination that the state has established by ??clear and convincing evidence? that the patient does not have the capacity to decide for herself whether or not to take the medication and that the treatment was narrowly tailored to give substantive effect to the patient??s liberty interests.
NO CONSTITUTIONAL OATH
According to Alexandra, Rodriguez wrote that she was ??preservative about her ??legal rights?? and was being ??railroaded?? since being ??yanked at my doorstep for no reason??. Alexandra said Rodriguez found that she was paranoid because she repeatedly requested to see the documents pertaining to her case including her medical chart and was ????insistent that she had not had the opportunity to defend herself in a grand jury, continually making references to legal terminology???, stating she had done her research about the case and that the previous judge, Keefe, was a ??de facto employee with no constitutional oath?.
While Gerber and Kelley had claimed that Alexandra did not understand courtroom procedure, Rodriguez found that she was paranoid because she was ??preservative about her legal rights? and although a review of the report shows that Alexandra was extremely specific and lucid about her rights, said that she had ??poor insight into her alleged illness and into her legal situation?.
Like Gerber and Kelley, Rodriguez maintained that ??Ms. Barely?..will likely be unable to cooperate with his defense counsel and thereby be unable to address his legal her legal (sic) needs?.
Although the NYS Department of Health confirms that Rodriguez is not a licensed physician in New York State, she has signed a sworn affidavit under the title of physician, claiming to be licensed. A DOH spokesman said a resident could sign MD after their name but that did not make them a licensed physician.
Rodriguez failed to respond to The Empire Journal??s request for comment.
Both Sanon and Rodriguez claimed to be the treating physicians of Alexandra although neither had ever seen her before her involuntary hospitalization at Kirby.
Although the law provides that an attorney must be present during the physician??s examination of the patient, according to Mental Hygiene Legal Services, no legal counsel was present for Alexandra.
Based on the sworn affidavits of Sanon and Rodriguez, both of which allegedly contain false written statements, Hicks and Kirby filed a petition with the New York Supreme Court for a final order to forcibly administer a myriad of drugs including antipsychotic medication to ??Darlene Barely?.
At the hearing held Oct. 6 inside Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center, Alexandra??s MHLS attorney Feerick advised Supreme Court judge Martin Schoenfeld that the state and Kirby had failed to comply with statutory and case law in regard to comply with the safeguards guaranteed a patient such as legal counsel being present during the examination done by two board certified physicians as well as a hearing being held that was open to the general public. She said due to the violations of law and Alexandra??s rights, that all orders and hearings must be vacated.
Although Mental Hygiene Law is specific that the independent review cannot be conducted by a physician employed by the facility, Feerick said that too was violated as the primary evidence presented against Alexandra was the testimony of a psychiatrist employed by the hospital who had not treated the patient.
Feerick demonstrated to Judge Schoenfeld that the hearing had been illegally constituted because affidavits filed with the order to show cause to involuntarily administer medication to Alexandra were not in compliance as it is required that two board certified physicians examine the patient in the presence of an attorney when the state wants to medicate a prisoner involuntarily.
According to Frederick, who was present, despite the Supreme Court and state Court of Appeals ruling that all rights must be fully complied with for forced medication, Judge Schoenfeld said he didn??t feel that the repeated violations were important.
Despite patients rights being spelled out by law, according to Frederick, ??Barely??s? attorney was not allowed to cross examine the state??s only witness and no evidence or testimony of any emergency or violent behavior by Alexandra was presented as required before the court can order confinement and forced drug treatment. Neither Alexandra nor her witness were allowed to testify. By law, there must be three or more documented violent occurrences before such confinement and forced treatment can be ordered. In a 2000 decision by the state Supreme Court, it was held ??in order for a hospital to detain a patient for involuntary psychiatric care, it must be demonstrated by clear and convincing evidence that the patient is mentally ill and in need of continued, supervised care and treatment, and that the patient poses a substantial threat of physical harm to herself and/or others?.
The records show that no such evidence or testimony was presented to the court about Barely/Early/Alexandra.
ALLEGED FALSE DOCUMENTS BY STATE
According to Frederick between Oct. 6 and 11, he obtained confirmation from three independent sources, in addition to Alexandra, that there had been material denials of due process as well as the submission of false documents by the state.
On Nov. 16, Feit advised Judge Keefe and the Albany County district attorney??s office that Keefe had committed Early/Alexandra to the custody of OMH before he could make application for a hearing or file a writ of habeas corpus and she was removed from Albany County.
??Initially, by making telephone calls to the MHLS attorneys who work under the aegis of the various Appellate Divisions to provide legal assistance to those confined, I sought to make every effort to assure that Ms. Early would be treated humanely and fairly??.Since that date, I have learned of the tragic and horrible events that have ensured for Ms. Early??
Feit told Keefe that the allegations against Alexandra were non-violent and ??hardly justifying the cruel way in which she has been treated?. He asked for a preliminary hearing in the matter.
People who have not been found guilty of any crime but are simply being ??evaluated? are being intermixed at Kirby with convicted serial killers and rapists, Frederick says.
He charges that political dissents are being drugged and held for years in New York without a trial in violation of their constitutional rights.
??The defendant is a thorn in the side of Albany officials?, Frederick says. He says that Alexandra is being punished for exercising her political free speech rights. He says the required elements of criminal intent to receive some ??ill-gotten gain obviously are missing since she is calling them and challenging their authority?.
??If it can happen to Darlene, anybody, you or I, could be made to disappear in this dark hole without ever having a trial. This is the exact same technique both Hitler and Stalin used on political dissidents and others?.
Frederick points out that Alexandra??s challenge of political authority is the ??kind of up-front political protest and political position that the DMV doesn??t really have a valid constitutional right to regulate travel. If officials have a problem with their legal foundation for regulating travel, they need to get the proper process going to solve it, not illegally putting away a free speech challenger?.
He maintains that if Turley and other officials cannot deal with dissenters in a democracy in a fair way they should not be in their positions. ??In New York, they will cut you a break as a robber or murderer but god forbid you challenge the authority of the Evil Empire State or one of its henchmen?.
The courts have held that the Fifth Amendment Due Process clause permits the government to involuntarily administer antipsychotic drugs to a mentally ill defendant facing serious criminal charges in order to render that defendant competent to stand trial but only if treatment is medically appropriate, is substantially unlikely to have side effects that may undermine the fairness of the trial and taking account less intrusive alternatives. Assuming that the defendant was not dangerous to himself or others, he could not be ordered involuntarily to take antipsychotic drugs solely to render him competent to stand trial without consideration of important questions about trial related side effects and risk of drugs to be used.
The higher courts have found that a government may not deprive any person of liberty without due process of law
According to recent reports, in an attempt to counteract increasing political activism and dissent with government, in an attempt to stifle public opposition and attempts at reform, police agencies nationwide are simply levying false charges against their critics, labeling them ??mental? in an attempt to not only discredit them but to ??teach them a lesson?
The American Civil Liberties Union says that dozens of activists and organizations have been subjected to the scrutiny of the FBI and have initiated Freedom of Information Law requests to determine the scope and purpose of the FBI.
The FBI denies singling out individuals or organizations for surveillance or investigation based solely on activities protected by the Constitutional guarantees of free speech.
