Delaware Supreme Court Task Force on Criminal Justice and ...

to information sharing and the proper treatment of inmates with mental illnesses. Tobetter understand these barriers, both real and perceived, <strong>Task</strong> <strong>Force</strong> member DwightHolden, Chairperson of the <strong>Delaware</strong> Board of Parole, requested an opinion from theState Solicitor pursuant to Title 29, Chapter 5 of the <strong>Delaware</strong> Code.On April 29, 2009, Mr. Holden asked the State Solicitor to provide an opinionconcerning the applicability of the federal and state HIPAA laws as well as any otherapplicable laws regarding confidentiality to <strong>Delaware</strong>’s criminal justice agencies withrespect to inter-agency sharing and/or transfers of the medical and mental health recordsof sentenced defendants in criminal cases. Mr. Holden also requested that the StateSolicitor provide an opinion regarding what statutory or rule changes might be necessaryto fully authorize the various criminal justice agencies to engage in regular inter-agencysharing and/or transfer of the mental and medical health records of sentenced defendantsin criminal cases without the necessity of a written waiver. A copy of the request isincluded in the appendix to this report.Involuntary CommitmentsA large number of people who appear for involuntary commitment hearings havehad some kind of police contact. The <strong>Task</strong> <strong>Force</strong> is working to develop ways to ensurethat judges know if a defendant appearing before them in a criminal matter has beeninvoluntarily committed. The <strong>Task</strong> <strong>Force</strong> is working with Superior <strong>Court</strong> and theProthonotary’s Office to “flag” case files. Coding files would alert judges of involuntarycommitments while also preserving the confidentiality of defendants.10