A hypothetical.
Let’s say you hint to a family member or loved one that you are contemplating suicide. Say you leave the country and that family member gets worried and calls the police. The police knock on your door but you are not home. They reach out to your friends and determine that the suicide threat may be credible. Then they try to call you, but you don’t answer the phone.
Now let’s say you are not actually contemplating suicide, at least any longer. Those feelings have passed and you are now in a better state of mind. You see suicide for what it is, a permanent solution to what is almost always a temporary problem.
Now you board an international flight back to the United States. Is it possible that your name has been flagged or added to some sort of database? Might you be questioned or detained while going through passport control? Can they detain you, as a risk to yourself, under so-called emergency hold rules on the basis of a tip from a friend?
Someone very dear to me has put this question to me and I simply do not know the answer. I’ve searched the internet and even a couple legal databases and have not been able to find anything authoritative. So I figured I’d ask you, dear readers.
This is a bit tangential to travel; I’m doing it for someone who needs help and putting it on my blog in hopes that someone with experience in this issue may chime in below in the comments section or via email. If we get a solid answer, I’ll update this post.
Thanks for weighing in.
And whether you believe it or not, I’m just fine. It’s not me…
image: U.S. Customs and Border Protection
the last sentence should read, “it’s not i…”
Methinks thou dost protest too much.
sorry man! blame my 8th grade grammar teacher!
love your site bye (ha!) the way.
I think it’d be OK to question them a little (SSSS with a couple more questions), but detain? That’s too much for me, there’s not enough probable cause for me to detain someone who may or may not be suicidal. And there’s no reason to believe they are a threat to anyone else.
Lol. People giving enough shit to actually spend time and energy to detain you unless you are in the actual act of committing suicide. I have never known Americans, even law enforcement, to be that caring. Stereotyping of course so there probably are exceptions.
There are definitely exceptions that I have witnessed (sadly). The police in my little suburb of Los Angeles take such threats extremely seriously.
At least in my jurisdiction, law enforcement will not get involved with a suicide threat unless that person is a threat to public safety. A person who is actively suicidal will be handled by EMS, if someone says they had thoughts but are not currently suicidal, it’s the call of the on scene paramedic and their treatment protocols in regards to how to handle situation. For the record, I’m an EMT with 10 years of experience running the streets.
Disband the TSA.
So,
I actually have experience in this field. That being said, I have no idea what the rules are abroad. In the USA, rules are usually determined at a state level, but in some states it’s left to be even more localized than that. I know California has rules set up at a county level. That being said, if someone is concerned about someone leaving or arriving in a particular jurisdiction, you usually would contact the authorities, and they may question the individual. Unfortunately, if it goes further than that is usually up to the authorities/police at that point. Again, different localities have different criteria, but usually one needs to be an imminent threat to themselves or others. I do not think TSA has the capability to detain for this reason, but I’ve never experienced that particular situation. It’s usually up to police. Military police qualify. Federal marshals should qualify. I’m not aware of a federal policy. It’s usually determined by the local state/county rules of the jurisdiction that person is in at the time.
Matt feel free to contact me directly.
So,
You actually knows nothing but loved to speak up? Ever try to be vocalist of a metal band?
Don’t be so bloody rude…
Consult an experienced lawyer in this matter. You can’t get a professional opinion for free.
Unless you are a person who loved sweet lies and couldn’t handle bitter truth, please remember adagium of *you pay peanuts, you get monkey*
Matthew, if your friend or anybody else you know is in trouble, here are some resources they can contact:
* The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat/ or 1-800-273-8255
* The National Domestic Violence Hotline – https://www.thehotline.org/what-is-live-chat/ or 1-800-799-SAFE
The situation you describe could be in situations where one or both of those resources could be helpful. Even if they aren’t, some readers or those finding this post by web search may find these resources useful. To those readers — there is help.
You can’t read well can’t you?
Speaking with firsthand knowledge, the TSA would not have jurisdiction to detain a subject in a situation like this. First, a missing person report would have to be filed by the concerned party and alert the authorities in their local jurisdiction to the suicidal risk. CBP would then be notified if/when the subject travels internationally. The at-risk subject would then be detained for “wellness check” purposes. At that point the authorities that inputted the missing person report would be contacted by CBP for further instruction.
Not talking about TSA, talking about DHS officials as you enter country.
Actually, as a Mental Health professional, this is indeed a fascinating question.
I believe it would fall under not allowing someone who might potentially a danger to self and/or others on to an aircraft, or someone who might be deemed “unstable.”
On the ground, as noted above, this might be more of a conventional law enforcement issue, which is a highly provincial and local system. Depends how the local law enforcement handles mental health matters. Literally each county, agency i.e. sheriff’s department vs police, vs possible overlap with Federal authorities.
An assessment might be in order, but the mere allegation might unfairly prevent someone from traveling.
In my mind this highlights how blurry the landscape has become on Mental Health Law, both on the ground and off the ground.
I have repeatedly commented on blogs about the concerns this and similar situations might raise.
Matthew- you say it’s not a TSA issue, but I think TSA might be best situated to prevent harm to self and others.
And I think people are missing the point– true, police don’t usually intervene until there’s a threat to others, but a suicidal person in an airport is pretty much the definition of threat to others.
I understand suicide bombers aren’t the same type of mentally unstable, but it’s not an unreasonable comparison… both have chemical imbalances that lead to lack of rationality/control, and both are in places that can cause serious harm to others (airports).
An interesting thought experiment for sure. China’s social monitoring might be a good place to start the analysis.