Sen. R. Creigh Deeds, D-Bath County, introduced the legislation several weeks after the death of his 24-year-old son, Austin “Gus” Deeds, who had a history of mental illness. Deeds’ son was picked up on an emergency custody order in Bath County on Nov. 18 and later released because mental health workers could not find an available psychiatric bed before the order’s six-hour time limit expired. On the morning of Nov. 19, Gus Deeds stabbed his father multiple times before shooting himself to death.
Deeds’ omnibus legislation (Senate Bill 260) will extend the maximum duration of emergency custody orders to 12 hours and require state hospitals to accept individuals under temporary detention orders when private beds can’t be found. The bill will require the law enforcement agency that executes an emergency custody order to notify the local community services board, which serves as the public intake agency for mental health emergencies.
The bill also calls for a state registry of acute psychiatric treatment beds to provide real-time information for mental health workers.
