[§334-126]  Hearing.  (a)  The time andform of the procedure incident to hearing the issues in the petition shall beprovided by family court rule and consistent with this part.

(b)  The hearing may be held at any convenientplace within the circuit.  The subject of the petition, any interested person,or the family court upon its own motion may request a hearing in another courtbecause of inconvenience to the parties, witnesses, or the family court orbecause of the subject’s physical or mental condition.

(c)  The hearing shall be closed to the public,unless the subject of the petition requests otherwise.

(d)  The subject of the petition shall bepresent at the hearing.  However, if the subject has been served with thepetition and does not appear at the hearing, the court, in its discretion, maygo forward with the hearing.

(e)  The subject of the petition need not, butmay, be represented by an attorney.  If the subject desires an attorney and isindigent, or if the family court determines that the legal or factual issuesraised are of such complexity that the assistance of an attorney is necessaryfor an adequate presentation of the merits or that the subject of the petitionis unable to speak for the subject’s self, the family court shall order theappointment of a public defender or other attorney to represent the subject andcontinue the hearing for not more than five days.

(f)  If the subject of the petition isrepresented by an attorney, the attorney shall be allowed adequate time forinvestigation of the matters at issue and preparation.  The attorney shall bepermitted to present evidence believed necessary for proper disposition of theproceeding.

(g)  No subject of the petition shall beordered to receive involuntary outpatient treatment unless at least onepsychiatrist testifies in person at the hearing who has personally examined thesubject within the time period commencing five calendar days before the filingof the petition and ending at the time of the psychiatrist’s testimony.  The psychiatrist’stestimony shall state the facts which support the allegation that the subjectmeets all the criteria for involuntary outpatient treatment, the recommendedoutpatient treatment, and the rationale for the recommended outpatienttreatment.

If the recommended outpatient treatmentincludes medication, the psychiatrist’s testimony shall describe the types orclasses of medication(s) which should be authorized, and describe the physicaland mental beneficial and detrimental effects of such medication(s).

If the subject of the petition has refused tobe examined by a licensed psychiatrist, the family court may request thesubject to consent to examination by a psychiatrist appointed by the court oremployed at a community mental health center.  If the subject of the petitiondoes not consent and the family court finds sufficient evidence to believe thatthe allegations in the petition are true, the family court may order thecommitment of the subject to a psychiatric facility for examination.  The commitmentshall not be for more than twenty-four hours.  The examining psychiatrist shallsubmit the findings and recommendations to the family court.

The subject of the petition’s refusal to submitvoluntarily to examination shall be treated as a denial that the subject issuffering from a severe mental disorder or substance abuse, and a denial thatthe subject otherwise fits within the criteria for a court order of involuntaryoutpatient treatment.

Nothing herein shall be construed in a way thatlimits the subject of the petition’s privilege against self-incrimination.

(h)  The subject of the petition may secure oneor more psychiatric examinations and present the findings as evidence at thehearing.  The subject shall be entitled to a psychiatric examination at acommunity mental health center if the subject so desires, and if an examinationhas not already been conducted at a community mental health center which willlead to psychiatric testimony at the hearing. [L 1984, c 251, pt of §1]