Article 10 Civil Management in New York: Mental Abnormality, the Volitional-Impairment Requirement, and the Confinement-or-SIST Decision

Stephan M. Carlson, MD, MBA, FAPA · Violence and Threat Risk

An Article 10 proceeding is not a second sentence. It asks a clinical-legal question—does a detained sex offender suffer a mental abnormality that makes it seriously difficult to control his conduct—and most contested evaluations falter because they answer the lay question of dangerousness instead. What Article 10 actually requires New York's Sex Offender Management and Treatment Act, codified at Mental Hygiene Law Article 10, authorizes civil management of certain "detained sex offenders" at the end of a criminal sentence. The threshold finding is a "mental abnormality," defined as a congenital or acquired condition, disease, or disorder that affects the emotional, cognitive, or volitional

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