The school called, or the police did, or nobody did and you found out from a friend's parent. Your child is somewhere on a "5585," and the words being used — custody, facility, 72 hours — are the vocabulary of a system you have never had to learn. Here is what it says about you.

The short answer: a minor is held under the Children's Civil Commitment and Mental Health Treatment Act, which mirrors the adult 5150 but adds duties toward parents. A peace officer, a member of a designated facility's staff, or a county-designated professional "may, upon probable cause," take a minor into custody for up to 72 hours where the minor is a danger to self or others or gravely disabled as a result of a mental disorder, and no voluntary alternative is available.¹ "The facility shall make every effort to notify the minor's parent or legal guardian as soon as possible after the minor is detained."¹ Where the evaluator concludes the minor needs further treatment, "every effort shall be made to obtain the consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian prior to treatment and placement," and the placement must be "the least restrictive placement alternative in which the minor can receive the necessary treatment."² If your child was taken from school by a peace officer, the principal must "take immediate steps to notify the parent, guardian, or responsible relative" of the release and where the child is being taken.³ What the law does not give you is a veto: "Inability to obtain the consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian shall not preclude the involuntary treatment" of a minor who meets the standard.²

The standard

Same three grounds as for an adult — danger to self, danger to others, grave disability — with a definition of grave disability written for a child. A "gravely disabled minor" is one who, "as a result of a mental disorder, is unable to use the elements of life that are essential to health, safety, and development, including food, clothing, and shelter, even though provided to the minor by others."⁴ The last clause is the one that distinguishes it from the adult test: a child who has a home and meals but cannot use them is inside it.

And the statute says what is not a mental disorder on its own: intellectual disability, epilepsy or other developmental disability, alcoholism, other drug abuse, and "repeated antisocial behavior."⁴ A hold cannot lawfully rest on any of those alone.

What you are owed, in order

  1. Notification. "Every effort" to notify you "as soon as possible after the minor is detained."¹ That is the facility's duty, not something you must chase; but it is "every effort," not a guarantee within a stated number of hours, so call the facility rather than wait.
  2. Notification from the school, if that is where it started. When a principal releases a minor pupil to a peace officer to be removed from the premises, the principal "shall take immediate steps to notify the parent, guardian, or responsible relative" of the release and of the place the child is reportedly being taken.³ The one exception is a minor taken into custody as a suspected victim of child abuse or under the dependency law, where the officer rather than the school handles notification and may withhold the location for up to 24 hours if disclosure would endanger the child or disturb custody, while still saying whether medical treatment is being provided.³
  3. A request for your consent before treatment and placement. Once the evaluator concludes the minor will need further treatment, the statute requires that the family and the minor be consulted and informed about the recommendation, and that "every effort shall be made to obtain the consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian prior to treatment and placement."² Expect that conversation; if it does not come, ask for it by name.
  4. The least restrictive placement. Treatment after the evaluation must be in "the least restrictive placement alternative in which the minor can receive the necessary treatment."² A child who can be safely treated at home with a crisis plan is not to be placed in a facility for want of asking.
  5. Information about your child, within the confidentiality rules. The confidentiality statute lets a parent or guardian designate in writing who may receive a minor's records where the minor was admitted with the parent's consent; on an involuntary hold that designation right is not yet yours, and what you can be told follows the family-notification rules that apply to any patient.⁵ The hospital won't tell me anything →

What you cannot do

Refuse. "Inability to obtain the consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian shall not preclude the involuntary treatment of a minor who is determined to be gravely disabled or a danger to himself or herself or others."² The hold is an involuntary process; your consent is sought, and it matters for what happens after the 72 hours, but the evaluation and any emergency treatment proceed if the standard is met. Involuntary treatment of a minor must follow the adult Act's protections, which include the rights the facility must read to the patient and the patients' rights advocate.²

What to bring, and what to say

The evaluation turns on history. Bring what the evaluator cannot otherwise know: prior episodes, medications and when they stopped, the outpatient clinician's name, what changed this week. Ask three questions, in this order: What is the legal basis — danger to self, danger to others, or grave disability? What placement is being proposed and why is nothing less restrictive enough? What do you need my consent for?

After the 72 hours

If the facility wants to hold your child longer, the same certification and review process applies as for an adult, with the same hearing rights. What happens after the 72 hours → If the plan is a voluntary admission on your consent, a separate statute gives a 14-to-17-year-old the right to demand an independent review of a parent-consented admission to a private facility. My parents put me in a hospital → And the bills that follow have their own rules. Hospital bills after a psychiatric hold → · Ambulance bills after a 5150 →

Q&A

Q: Can the school put my child on a hold? A: No. Only a peace officer, designated facility staff, or a county-designated professional may take a minor into custody on probable cause.¹ A school that calls one of them must then notify you of the release and the destination.³

Q: Nobody called me. Is the hold invalid? A: The duty is "every effort ... as soon as possible."¹ A failure to notify is a serious complaint to the facility and the county patients' rights advocate; it does not by itself end a hold that otherwise meets the standard.

Q: Can they medicate my child without asking me? A: The statute requires every effort to obtain your consent before treatment, and permits involuntary treatment where the standard is met and consent cannot be obtained, under the adult Act's rules on medication and refusal.² Can they medicate me against my will? →

Q: My teenager is 16 and says they want to stay. Do I decide? A: A minor who accepts voluntary treatment is outside the involuntary process; the statute's first condition is that "no voluntary treatment authorization" is available.¹ Consent rules for voluntary care are on their own page. Can my teen see a therapist? →

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Sources

  1. Cal. Welfare & Institutions Code §5585.50 — custody of a minor on probable cause for up to 72 hours where the minor is a danger to self or others or gravely disabled and no voluntary authorisation is available; the designated-facility requirement; "The facility shall make every effort to notify the minor's parent or legal guardian as soon as possible after the minor is detained" — california.public.law.
  2. Cal. Welfare & Institutions Code §5585.53 — where the evaluator finds the minor will require additional treatment, the duty to consult and inform the family and the minor; "the least restrictive placement alternative in which the minor can receive the necessary treatment"; "Every effort shall be made to obtain the consent of the minor's parent or legal guardian prior to treatment and placement"; "Inability to obtain the consent ... shall not preclude the involuntary treatment"; involuntary treatment to comply with the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act — california.public.law.
  3. Cal. Education Code §48906 — a principal who releases a minor pupil to a peace officer "shall take immediate steps to notify the parent, guardian, or responsible relative" of the release and the destination, except where the minor is taken into custody as a suspected victim of child abuse or under W&I §305, in which case the officer notifies and may withhold the location for up to 24 hours — california.public.law.
  4. Cal. Welfare & Institutions Code §5585.25 — the definition of "gravely disabled minor," and the conditions that do not by themselves constitute a mental disorder — california.public.law.
  5. Cal. Welfare & Institutions Code §5328(a)(4) — where a minor "has been admitted with the consent of their parent or legal guardian," the parent or guardian may designate in writing the persons to whom the minor's records or information may be disclosed — california.public.law.

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