2firfun50 wrote:It has been reported that Adam Lanza had a recognized mental condition, diagnosed by psychiatrists. I would suggest that it would be reasonable to require all mental health providers to report to local law enforcement such conditions with recomendations regarding public safety issues such as violent tendancies, driving restrictions, and firearms ownership. Failure to do so, could result in civil and criminal penalties. Local law enforcement would then visit the individual and other members of the household and report to NCIC as appropriate. This approach would be similar to the current requirements to report bullet wounds, child abuse etc.
Just maybe such an approach would have caused Adam's mother to rethink her actions and saved lives.
I do think that the mental health system in this country has degenerated to almost nothing. And privacy policies put in place by HIPAA are a major obstacle to making effective the existing laws against purchase of firearms by people with mental problems. What exactly the right way to resolve these problems isn't clear to me, but I'd like careful thought put towards this goal while avoiding the sort of Orwellian nightmare Charles describes.
