(1) Any person subjected to restricted liberty as a
sexually violent predator pursuant to this chapter shall not
forfeit any legal right or suffer any legal disability as a
consequence of any actions taken or orders made, other than as
specifically provided in this chapter, or as otherwise authorized
by law.
(2) Any person committed pursuant to this chapter has the
right to adequate care and individualized treatment. The
department of social and health services shall keep records
detailing all medical, expert, and professional care and
treatment received by a committed person, and shall keep copies
of all reports of periodic examinations made pursuant to this
chapter. All such records and reports shall be made available
upon request only to: The committed person, his or her attorney,
the prosecuting attorney, the court, the protection and advocacy
agency, or another expert or professional person who, upon proper
showing, demonstrates a need for access to such records.
(3) At the time a person is taken into custody or
transferred into a facility pursuant to a petition under this
chapter, the professional person in charge of such facility or
his or her designee shall take reasonable precautions to
inventory and safeguard the personal property of the persons
detained or transferred. A copy of the inventory, signed by the
staff member making it, shall be given to the person detained and
shall, in addition, be open to inspection to any responsible
relative, subject to limitations, if any, specifically imposed by
the detained person. For purposes of this subsection,
"responsible relative" includes the guardian, conservator,
attorney, spouse, parent, adult child, or adult brother or sister
of the person. The facility shall not disclose the contents of
the inventory to any other person without consent of the patient
or order of the court.
(4) Nothing in this chapter prohibits a person presently
committed from exercising a right presently available to him or
her for the purpose of obtaining release from confinement,
including the right to petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
(5) No indigent person may be conditionally released or
unconditionally discharged under this chapter without suitable
clothing, and the secretary shall furnish the person with such
sum of money as is required by RCW 72.02.100 for persons without
ample funds who are released from correctional institutions. As
funds are available, the secretary may provide payment to the
indigent persons conditionally released pursuant to this chapter
consistent with the optional provisions of RCW 72.02.100 and 72.02.110, and may adopt rules to do so.
(6) If a civil commitment petition is dismissed, or a trier
of fact determines that a person does not meet civil commitment
criteria, the person shall be released within twenty-four hours
of service of the release order on the superintendent of the
special commitment center, or later by agreement of the person
who is the subject of the petition.
[2009 c 409 § 7; 1995 c 216 § 8; 1990 c 3 § 1008.]
NOTES:
Application -- Effective date -- 2009 c 409: See notes following RCW 71.09.020.