Abstract
In 1997, the United States Supreme Court upheld Kansas' Sexually Violent Predator Act, which authorized the civil commitment of sex offenders who had a "mental abnormality" or "personality disorder" that predisposed them to commit sexually violent acts. The Court held that the Act's "mental abnormality" requirement satisfied substantive due process.
This Note focuses on civilly committable mental illness and attendant substantive due process concerns of the Supreme Court's decision. The author contends that Supreme Court precedent supports either of two potential definitional standards for committable mental illness. The Note concludes that under either standard a state could constitutionally commit individuals who have committed a violent offense and who suffer from antisocial personality disorder.
How to Cite
40 Ariz. L. Rev. 319 (1998)
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