Brother suicide attempt legal question

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bsctov

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Hey everyone, It's been a rough past few days but some lady really got me angry earlier today and it sounds like total bogus but then again with the stupid laws of today, you can never be to sure.

To make a long story short, my step-brother moved out of my parents house (Where I also live, am 20, moving out next year after college.) and went to a small motel about 5 miles from here and shot himself in the leg in an apparent suicide attempt. He later admitted it was a suicide attempt and they took him to the hospital and was later transferred to a psych unit where he will remain for about a week or so.

The nurse(?) from the unit calls and kept asking where his gun was at (Police have it.) and said we weren't allowed to have any guns in our house because he tried to do this and may try to do it again via sneaking in. However, he's no longer going to be living here (For this very reason.) and will be living with his actual dad.



Is this nonsense or what?
 
Better get all the guns out of the National Guard armory, he might sneak in there! (and the police station, and the gun shops, and...)
 
'Health professionals' will never tell you it's ok to have guns in your house, no matter what the circumstances.
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Not always true. I am a former paramedic and now a nurse. I am always pro gun. In fact most of the staff in the ER I used to work at were shooters. This included the Docs. I now teach ACLS and PALS. I use my laptop for projecting ECG strips up on a screen. My laptop has a Magpul and BCM Gunfighter sticker on it's lid.

If it was truly the nurse from the unit they are overstepping their bounds. Calling the house directly is not one of their duties. If they have a concern they should talk with PD and leave it at that. Along with that, I would be curious if they gave info on the patient out during this call. If so they may have committed a HIPPA violation unless they have written consent from the patient himself.
 
So we can go and disarm people because their relative is crazy now, but we can't stop schizophrenics from being denied on psychiatric reasons simply because it violates privacy acts? Ne sperate, nam spem necatur semper.
 
bsctov said:
said we weren't allowed to have any guns in our house because he tried to do this and may try to do it again via sneaking in
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Last time I looked, there wasn't any law on the books that allows a nurse to tell me what I am "allowed or not allowed" to do.

Tell her to pound sand, and then speak to her supervisor so they will get YOUR version of why you told her to pound sand.
 
The above observations are correct, but it would be advisable to secure any guns that might still be in the house, especially if he will still be living in the same area.

A shot to the leg suggests that he was crying out for attention or help, as opposed to a serious suicide attempt, but that's for someone other then me to deal with.
 
I don't know that state laws so I really can't comment about the nurses call. However, are the guns at the house secured and locked up so if your brother does try and get in home he can't get to one? I have a friend whose brother did try and commit suicide and he did try to access another gun from parrents home. Fortunately parrents had secured the firearms in the house. Irrespective of the law, I don't think you or your mom would wanr it on your souls if your brother did get access to one of the family weapons and kill himself.
 
Two things:

1. There's good hope for your step brother, that he'll be just fine in the future, if he receives proper counseling and "maybe" meds. He may have been asking for help (leg shot) rather than seriously trying to end his life.

2. Maybe they'll allow use of a gun safe provided no one gives him the combo.
 
I knew of someone in a similar situation. A faimly member tried to cut her wrists and they were told to get all the knives, razor blades and other sharp objects out of the house. It was stern medical advice but it did not carry the weight of law. Nobody was going to come and enforce it.
 
I knew of someone in a similar situation. A faimly member tried to cut her wrists and they were told to get all the knives, razor blades and other sharp objects out of the house. It was stern medical advice but it did not carry the weight of law. Nobody was going to come and enforce it.
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i can see how someone could think its a good idea to remove guns from the house after a suicide attempt.......but to expect someone to remove anything sharp or pointy......thats just lunacy.

do they honestly expect you to not be able to prepare meals, maintain the yard, shave, cut paper, open packages....?

why is it that these people have a hard time understanding that if a person is determined to kill them selves/ someone else........that they are going to do it...

..if they cant find a gun, theyll use a knife...if they cant find a knife theyll use a rope.....if they cant find rope theyll use a bridge.
 
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If a person is involuntarily committed, he cannot posses, or have control of any firearms. This does not mean his family cannot have any firearms, and it also does not mean that his personal firearms have to be in police hands.

As long as all firearms are secure from his posession, you are fine. You or your dad can "hold" his firearms for him, as long as he does not have possession.
 
That wasn't a suicide attempt that was a cry for help. There is a difference, but the two often get confused. The difference is that in a cry for help, they invariably attack a part of their own body that won't ensure death. Hence the leg shot and not the cerebral cortex.

As for the nurse, doesn't she have someone that needs a fresh bedpan?

Just telling you they need to be locked and out of reach is sufficient.

You can go get the firearm from the PD too, if they are abiding by the law that day that is, as long as it isn't being held as evidence of a crime.
 
I would contact the hospitals legal department
and ask them if the allow nurses to offer LEGAL advise

Then explain what happened and ask where to send the complaints.
 
Shadow... I'm pretty sure the nurse had the patient's best interest at heart. Do you really want a nurse fired just because she's ignorant about firearm law? I might have a few kind words with the nurse but, unless he/she turned out to be a nut-case, I'd leave it at that.
 
Do you really want a nurse fired just because she's ignorant about firearm law?
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Sounds like a good way for her to get educated on what she should be doing, as well as what she should not be doing. Who else is going to do it that she will listen to, other than those folks?

Just telling you they need to be locked and out of reach is sufficient.
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This, more or less.

Thankfully it absolutely does sound like a cry for help, as opposed to an honest to god suicide attempt. I hope he gets the help he needs.
 
Do you really want a nurse fired just because she's ignorant about firearm law?
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(partial quote) Sounds like a good way for her to get educated on what she should be doing, as well as what she should not be doing. Who else is going to do it that she will listen to, other than those folks?
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You didn't quote "enough" of what I wrote. No, that's not "necessarily" the best recourse. I said I'd have a talk with him/her and would only complain if he/she was nothing more than a nut-case. We NEED good caring nurses and... wouldn't it be better if we KEEP them and educate them about firearms if they overstep their boundaries?
 
good nurse would be able to find another job
I used to be in the medical field (military medic)
i grew up around nurses
you bitching, they shed like a duck sheds water
the legal team pointing out the finer parts of what IS and ISN'T covered by their malpractice policy, that SCARES THEM. You won't swing an anti like many in the medical community, but you CAN shut them down. And an education only sticks if the person is willing to learn.
 
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