Present law requires that if, and only if, a service recipient has communicated to a qualified mental health professional or behavior analyst an actual threat of bodily harm against a clearly identified victim, and the professional, using reasonable skill, knowledge, and care ordinarily possessed and exercised by the professional's specialty under similar circumstances, has determined or reasonably should have determined that the service recipient has the apparent ability to commit such an act and is likely to carry out the threat unless prevented from doing so, then the professional is required to take reasonable care to predict, warn of, or take precautions to protect the identified victim from the service recipient's violent behavior.
This bill requires that if, and only if, a service recipient has communicated to a qualified mental health professional or behavior analyst an intent for actual threat of bodily harm against a clearly identified victim, or an intent for actual threat of bodily harm against a group of people, including, but not limited to, students at a day care or school, people at a place of worship, and members of the service recipient's family, and the qualified mental health professional or behavior analyst, using the reasonable skill, knowledge, and care ordinarily possessed and exercised by the professional's or analyst's specialty under similar circumstances, has determined or reasonably should have determined that the service recipient has the apparent ability to commit such an act, then the professional or analyst is required to do the following:
(1) The professional or analyst must take reasonable care to warn of or take precautions to protect the identified victim or group of people from the service recipient's violent behavior; and
(2) The professional or analyst must report the threat to either the local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the municipality or county of residence of the service recipient, or, if the threat is general and not imminent or clearly identified, the local crisis response service.
This bill provides that a professional or analyst who acts or makes a reasonable attempt to act in accordance with this bill is not liable for damages in a civil action, subject to prosecution in a criminal proceeding, or subject to disciplinary action by a regulatory board for such act or reasonable attempt to act.
ON FEBRUARY 22, 2024, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 1625, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #1 adds that the qualified mental health professional or behavior analyst must not only determine, or reasonably should have determined, that the service recipient has the apparent ability to commit such an act, but that the service recipient is also likely to carry out the threat unless prevented from doing so.
ON MARCH 28, 2024, THE SENATE SUBSTITUTED HOUSE BILL 1625 FOR SENATE BILL 1673, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 1625, AS AMENDED.
AMENDMENT #1 adds that inpatient hospitalization of the service recipient discharges the duty to warn imposed on a qualified mental health professional or behavior analyst by state law.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 33-3-206
Amended with HA0526 -- 02/22/2024: 33-3-206
Amended with HA0526, SA0817 -- 03/28/2024: 33-3-206