Health Commissioner Outlines
Provisions of Mental Health Act
JUNEAU. Apr. 2—The Alaska
Mental Health Act now before the
U.S. Senate provides for good pro
cedures for the territory’s mental
health program and criticisms of
it in the states appear to be based
on misconceptions of the bill’s
content, Dr. Charles R. Hayman,
acting commissioner of health,
commented this week. The bill has
passed in the House of Represen
tatives.
First of all, Dr. Hayman pointed
out, the proposed act provides for
modem commitment and medical
treatment procedures for the
mentally ill instead of the present
methods in which a patient is ap
prehended by law officers, placed
in jail, charged with being insane,
and tried by a jury of laymen.
Alaska Has Responsibility
It gives to Alaska the responsi
bility and authority for hospitali
zation, care and treatment of its
mentally ill in place of the distant
federal government in Washing
ton, whose Interior Department
has determined the disposition of
the territory’s “insane” since 1912.
It makes Alaska’s governor ad
ministrator of the mental health
program with power to delegate
the authority to the appropriate
territorial agency.
The proposed mental health
act, Dr. Hayman continued, has
broad provisions for humane com
mitment and release, medical di
agnosis, treatment and care, both
in- and out-patient care, self ap
plication for hospitalization by an
individual seeking help, petition
for release from a mental hospital,
periodic review of cases by a li
censed physician, and many other
procedures for the protection and
aid of the mentally ill.
1,000,000-Acre Land Grant
It provides for a land grant of
1,000,000 acres including mineral
rights, income from which by sale,
lease or use, is for support of Al
aska’s mental health program.
It also provides for outright
grants of money over a 10-year
period to enable the territory to
gradually assume the full finan
cial support of the program.
While the bill proposes a sum
of $6,500,000 for “construction of
hospital and other facilities” Dr.
Hayman pointed out, no single
hospital or location is specified.
“It is possible,” he said, “that no
single big hospital would be built, J
•but that units in several hospitals
might be equipped for mental pa
tients.”
Application for Hospitalization
Under the terms of the bill, ap
plication for hospitalization may
be made by the patient, a friend,
relative or guardian, health, wel
fare or police officer, but the pa
tient must be examined by a li
censed physician to determine his
needs for care or treatment.
A patient may be brought to the
hospital by an officer if he is dan
ger of harming himself of others
but may not be detained unless
medical examination by a licensed
physician determines that hospit
alization is required for his own
and others’ safety. His legal
guardian or other interested par
ties must be notified of such com
mitment. Appeal may be made,
the case reviewed, and a hearing
held if necessity of hospitalization (
is questioned by any of the parties
concerned, including the patient.
Patients' Rights Retained
The proposed bill specifies that
exercise of civil rights, and of
communication and visits with
friends and relatives shall be re
tained by the patient.
It also states that improved pa
tients may be placed on conva
lescent status with plans for treat
j ment on an out-patient basis by
| the hospital or under the direction
j of a licensed physician. It provides
for reexamination of the case at
least annually and for discharge
upon determination by the hospi
tal head that the patient’s condi
tion so permits.
Contains Reciprocal Agreement
The bill also contains provisions
for care of Alaskans in other state
hospitals and care of out-of-state
patients in Alaska hospitals on a
reciprocal and reimbursable basis.
This is a common procedure,
Dr. Hayman pointed out, since
legal residents of one state often
become acutely ill while visiting
or working in another state. Un
der this reciprocal procedure, the
acutely ill patient may receive im
mediate hospitalization and his
treatment may proceed without
delay.
In the case of patients from oth
er states, the bill gives Alaska’s
governor authority to return the
patient to the state of which he is
a resident. If the patient or his
guardian refuse to consent to this
return, the governor may order
the patient’s discharge from the
Alaska hospital unless he is cer
tified by the head of the hospital
to be dangerous to himself or to
others, whereupon the governor
may have proceedings initiated
for judicial hospitalization and
mandatory return to the state of
his residence.
Big Bird Attacks Boy,
Mother and Trooper
Before Being Shot
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y., UPf— A
bird with a 45-inch tvingspread |
and a sharp beak attacked a six- |
year-old boy, a woman and a state !
trooper near here yesterday.
Trooper John waters shot the
bird with his .45 revolver as it :
swooped down on him. The bird, j
identified by a local resident as a j
bittern or stake driver, had a beak ,
four inches long.
Police said the bittern attacked
Donald Van Voorhees as he played j
in his yard at nearby Rock City, I
Dutchess County. The bird hacked j
at the boy with his beak.
Mrs. John Osterhoudt, armed i
with a broom, ran to the boy’s \
rescue. The bir^ turned on her but |
she managed to drive it into a |
bam.
When the trooper arrived he,
too, was attacked before he killed
the bittern.
None of the three was injured
seriously. It was not known why
the bird attacked them.
ST. BERNARD DOG PLAYS
REVERSE ROLE IN RESCUE
ALBION, N.Y., UP> — This St.
Bernard didn’t live up to the tra
dition of his breed. He carried no
keg of brandy. And he was the
rescued, not the rescuer.
Fireman in this western New
York village said they skidded 36
feet of ladder across the thin ice
of a quarry pond yesterday, and
then reached a final 15 feet with
a pike hook to hook the dog’s
collar and pull him to safety.
The dog had broken through
the icc.
Russia Accepts
Basic Idea of
'Open Skies' Plan
LONDON, UP*—Moscow radio
said Saturday Russia has accepted
the basic idea of President Eisen
hower’s “open skies” aerial in
spection plan and has proposed a
three-month arms freeze to be
followed by all-around cuts in
conventional arms and armies.
Meanwhile, all hydrogen weap
on tests would be banned.
The Russian proposal, as out
lined by the official Soviet news
agency Tass, calls for immediate
agreement on reducing conven
tional armaments. The Soviets say
this step “will facilitate agree
ment on prohibition of atomic and
thermonuclear weapons and their
removal from national arma
ments.”
Russia qnade its proposal at the
five power United Nations dis
armament talks in London, now
starting their third week. The
U.S., Britain, France and Canada
also are represented.
$1,279,902,000 More
Authorized for DEW7 Line
WASHINGTON, WP>—President
Eisenhower signed into law last
week a bill increasing the spend
ing authorization for the DEW
Line radar warning system to
$1,279,902,000.
The bill increases the spending
authorization by $72 million. Con
gress was told rising building
costs made the boost necessary.
The actual funds are still to be
appropriated.
Odd Job Man Jailed
For Threatening to
Assassinate Eisenhower
DENVER, (j—A 35-year-old
mine caretaker was in jail here
today after failing to make a
$1,000 bond on a federal charge
of threatening President Eisen
hower’s life.
The man was identified as Sam
Stepp of Inez, Ky., by Earl E.
Schoel, head of the Denver secret
service office.
Stepp was quoted by reporters
as saying, “I only called the FBI
to warn them the President of the
United States may be assassinated.
"I was worried.”
Schoell, however, said Stepp de
clared Monday night in a hotel
bar at Buena Vista, Colo., in dis
cussing the President, that ‘‘if I
ever got close enough to him I’ll
kill him. I have a .30-.30 bullet
for him.”
Stepp was arrested at Glen
wood Springs, Colo., Wednesday
after a statewide alarm was broad
cast for him.
He said he arrived at his pres
ent job March 24 and before that
had worked at odd jobs through
out the country.
MISS-UNDERSTANDING
WORCESTER, Mass., UP—Police
halted a young woman driver yes
terday for making a right turn
after her directional signals in
dicated a left turn.
The woman said she thought
the lights told drivers behind her
, which way they should turn.
There are more than 2,000 lakes
within the boundary of the State
! of Maine.
Murderer Was Methodical Man, Even
In Shooting Three Persons and Seif
ABERDEEN, Wash., UP)—Fred
W. Leach was a methodical man.
Even when it came to shooting
three other persons and himself.
Leach, a 76-year-old resident
of Aberdeen Gardens, six miles
north of Aberdeen on the Wish
kah River, is dead. So are Mrs.
Ida B. Hanson Sawyer, 60, George
W. Frye, 50 a utility lineman, and
Oletha Frye, 52.
All of them, said the coroner,
died at the hands of Leach some
time last week. They were killed
with a .38 caliber revolver fired
at close range into their heads.
The way sheriff’s deputies put
it together it all began to brew
last November. At that time,
Leach arranged with an Aberdeen
funeral home for his funeral and
burial.
Property Willed to Fryes
It was about then the Fryes
moved in with Leach. Acquain
tances said Leach told them he
had agreed to will his property to
the Fryes in return for their care
until he died.
Mrs. Sawyer came to the ram
shackle but well-furnished home
a week or 10 days ago for “a vis
it.”
Friday afternoon, Mrs. Ben
Meservey substituted for her hus
band on his rural mail route. She
found an envelope in Leach’s mail
box addressed to her husband.
Mrs. Meservey took the enve
lope home and her husband
opened it. Out dropped two $50
bills and a note which said:
$50 for Postman
“Ben: You can use this. I won’t
need it. You can take my paper
home but return all mail. As ever, I
Fred.” j
i Merservey drove out to the
Leach property and peered thru
a window when no one answered
his knock. He saw Frye’s body
lying on a bed and called the
sheriff’s office.
Meanwhile, the funeral parlor
received a letter from Leach, (in
cluding a copy of the funeral ar
rangement agreement). The letter
said:
"By the time you get this, you
can come out and get me. Will be
in the chicken house.”
Deputies found Mrs. Frye lying
j alongside Frye. On a davenport
in the living room was Mrs, Saw
yer’s body, a pillow over the head.
Clothes for the Funeral
And in the chicken House was
Leach’s body, with a .38 caliber
revolver clutched in the hand.
Hung with finicky care nearby
were a suit, white shirt, long un
derwear, necktie and socks, new
and fit for a man to be buried in.
The coroner said the three vic
tims in the house probably died
sometime early Wednesday. Leach
had been dead only a few hours,
apparently since about the time
he knew his note to Meservey and
the mortuary would be received.
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VERSES FROM NEW TESTAMENT BOOKS 2>
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All power is given unto Me in heaven
and in earth/’
MATT. 28: 18
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