Mental Health

Orders of Protective Custody (OPCs) are processed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

Location: 65278 LA-434, Lacombe, LA 70445
Contact: (985) 781-1150
Requirement: The procedure must be completed in person at the Coroner’s Office.

Call us anytime for assistance or guidance on the process.

Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:53.2, the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office may issue an Order for Protective Custody (OPC) upon the request of a peace officer or other credible person who, to the best of their knowledge and belief, determines that an individual has a mental illness or is suffering from a substance-related or addictive disorder and is in need of immediate treatment to protect the individual or others from physical harm.
The Order for Protective Custody (OPC) authorizes law enforcement to place the individual into protective custody and transport them to a treatment facility, as defined in Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:2.

Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:53(L), a peace officer or a peace officer accompanied by an emergency medical services technician may take an individual into protective custody and transport them to a treatment facility for a medical evaluation. This action may be taken when the officer, or officer accompanied by an EMS technician, has reasonable grounds, based on their personal observations, to believe that the individual is a proper subject for involuntary admission. Specifically, this applies when the individual is acting in a manner that is dangerous to themselves or others, is gravely disabled, and requires immediate hospitalization to protect themselves or others from physical harm. Transportation may only occur to a treatment facility as defined in Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:2.

Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:53, an emergency certificate may be issued by a licensed physician, physician assistant (per their clinical practice guidelines), psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, nurse practitioner (with collaborating physician approval), or psychologist only after personally examining the individual. The examiner must determine that the person, alleged to have a mental illness or a substance-related/addictive disorder, requires immediate care and treatment in a facility because they are dangerous to themselves or others, gravely disabled, and either unwilling or unable to seek voluntary admission, or willing to do so upon arrival at the treating facility. The individual must be medically cleared before admission to a mental health treatment facility. The certificate is valid for 72 hours. If, during the examination, it is determined that the individual does not meet the criteria for emergency admission, they must be released immediately.

Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:53, within 72 hours of admission under a physician’s Emergency Certificate (PEC), the individual shall be independently examined by the coroner or a deputy coroner who is a physician, preferably a psychiatrist. The coroner or deputy coroner shall execute an emergency certificate, which is a necessary precondition to the person’s continued confinement. If, based on the examination, the coroner or deputy coroner determines that the individual is not a proper subject for emergency admission, the person shall not be further detained in the treatment facility and shall be discharged by the director forthwith.

Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:53, if, based on the examination, the coroner determines that the individual is not a proper subject for emergency admission, the person shall not be further detained and shall be discharged immediately by the facility director.
Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:96, the administrator or treating physician may discharge any patient committed to a psychiatric hospital if they believe the patient has sufficiently recovered and that no harm will result from the discharge.
Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:96.1, the director, administrator, or head of a private psychiatric hospital may discharge a patient only upon receipt of a certificate from either two physicians, or from one physician and one psychologist, medical psychologist, or psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. The certificate must state that the patient has sufficiently recovered and that their discharge will not result in harm.

Pursuant to Louisiana Revised Statute § 28:53, a person with a mental illness or a substance-related or addictive disorder may be admitted and detained at a treatment facility under an emergency certificate for observation, diagnosis, and treatment for a period not to exceed fifteen days. The commitment period may not extend beyond fifteen days from the date and time the initial emergency certificate was executed in the parish of origin.

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