Maia Institute

12/08/2025

A court-ordered capacity evaluation is underway for Decarlos Brown Jr., accused in the fatal light-rail stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, as questions arise about his mental competency and history of untreated schizophrenia. The results will shape how this high-profile North Carolina case proceeds in the coming months.

Decarlos Brown Jr.’s case highlights NC’s rising demand for court-ordered mental health evaluations and capacity restoration treatment.

12/05/2025

A growing number of older Americans are dying by su***de with fi****ms, highlighting a quiet national crisis. Between 2009 and 2023, over 63,000 people aged 70 and older took their lives with handguns, with Nevada having the second-highest rate among older residents, according to data compiled by The Trace and the CDC.
https://knpr.org/show/knprs-state-of-nevada/2025-11-14/study-nevada-has-second-highest-rate-for-death-by-su***de-with-a-firearm

Older men in rural areas are particularly vulnerable, says research by The Trace. Experts say isolation, access to guns are factors.

12/03/2025

The Rockefeller Institute highlights recent legislative and administrative changes in New York that reduce federal funding for healthcare providers, including those serving mental health, substance-use, and physical disability patients.
https://www.rockinst.org/blog/an-option-for-the-state-to-maximize-federal-funding-for-safety-net-hospitals-with-inpatient-psychiatric-units/

A directed payment template could facilitate the targeting of resources to the state’s safety net providers that provide inpatient psychiatric care in lieu of state-only payments, backfilling lost federal resources.

12/01/2025

Lawsuits allege OpenAI’s ChatGPT caused serious psychological harm, including the death of 17-year-old Amaurie Lacey, due to alleged insufficient safety measures. Another case claims the AI manipulated a Canadian user, triggering a severe mental health crisis.
https://fortune.com/2025/11/07/chatgpt-open-sam-altman-su***de-lawsuits-17-year-old/

OpenAI called the situations “incredibly heartbreaking” and said it was reviewing the court filings to understand the details.

11/28/2025

Research shows high rates of mental illness among people on death row, with one study finding that 43% of those executed between 2000 and 2015 had documented mental-health diagnoses—likely an underestimate due to undiagnosed cases. Studies also reveal a strong link between mental illness and “volunteer” executions, with nearly 88% of prisoners who waived appeals suffering from mental illness or substance use disorders, many showing conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, PTSD, and prior su***de attempts.
https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-about-the-death-penalty-execution-of-prisoners-with-severe-mental-illness

In 2002, a Gallup poll found that 75% of Americans opposed exe­cut­ing indi­vid­u­als who have severe men­tal ill­ness­es. Many peo­ple believe that the...

11/27/2025

11/26/2025

A police union in northeast Attica has filed criminal complaints against psychiatrists at public mental-health facilities, accusing them of dereliction of duty after psychiatrists protested a 2024 directive requiring immediate patient intake despite severe bed and staffing shortages. Medical associations call the move “unprecedented,” warning that authorities are criminalizing psychiatric practice instead of addressing the critical lack of resources that makes compliance impossible. https://www.ekathimerini.com/in-depth/society-in-depth/1285620/psychiatric-doctors-face-police-legal-action/

A police union in northeast Attica has filed criminal complaints against psychiatrists at public mental health facilities, accusing them of continuous dereliction of duty and endangering patients.

11/24/2025

America First Legal (AFL) filed a federal complaint urging the U.S. Department of Education to investigate Illinois’ new law mandating mental-health screenings for students in grades 3–12 without parental consent, which they argue violates the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA). The law shifts critical authority from parents to the state by requiring students to answer deeply personal mental-health questions without the affirmative consent that federal law demands.
https://aflegal.org/press-release/america-first-legal-calls-for-federal-investigation-into-illinois-state-mandated-mental-health-screenings-of-students/

Today, America First Legal (AFL) filed a federal complaint on behalf of families in Illinois urging the U.S. Department of Education’s Student Privacy Policy Office (SPPO) to launch an investigation into Illinois’ new law requiring […]

11/21/2025

On World Mental Health Day, India faces a critical domestic emergency: a steep rise in student su***des that exposes a severe gap in mental-health support. This crisis has gained new urgency following the Supreme Court’s landmark 2025 ruling in Sukdeb Saha v. State of Andhra Pradesh, which frames student mental-health protection not just as policy but as a constitutional mandate
https://www.livelaw.in/lawschool/articles/supreme-court-national-task-force-and-student-mental-health-307933

On this World Mental Health Day, while global efforts rightly focus on 'Mental Health in Humanitarian Emergencies,' the Indian context presents a profound and urgent domestic crisis- Why students...

11/19/2025

When physicians struggle with depression, the impact extends far beyond their own well-being—patient care suffers, medical errors increase, and the cycle of inadequate mental health support deepens. Many doctors avoid seeking help due to licensing fears, stigma, and a culture that sees vulnerability as weakness, delaying treatment until crisis and increasing the risk of fatal outcomes.
https://kevinmd.com/2025/10/the-physician-mental-health-crisis-in-the-er.html

Emergency rooms are overwhelmed by a mental health crisis, leading to physician burnout and high su***de rates. This is a system failure. Discover the needed reforms.

11/17/2025

The Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled that a psychiatrist did not breach a patient’s rights under Ontario’s Health Care Consent Act when deeming him incapable of consenting to antipsychotic medication. In Jawadi v. Maerov, 2025 ONCA 704, the case involved a patient involuntarily admitted to Humber River Hospital and diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type. The court found that the doctor properly followed consent and capacity procedures under provincial law.
https://www.canadianlawyermag.com/practice-areas/medical-malpractice/ontario-court-of-appeal-says-psychiatrists-incapacity-finding-did-not-breach-patients-rights/393251

Ruling confirms involuntarily hospitalized man received timely advice from rights adviser

11/14/2025

American chess grandmaster Daniel Naroditsky has died at age 29, shocking the global chess community. Police in Charlotte, North Carolina, are investigating whether his sudden death was linked to mental health struggles or online pressure following a dispute with former World Champion Vladimir Kramnik.
https://inews.zoombangla.com/daniel-naroditskys-death-takes-dark-turn-did-online-accusations-and-mental-demons-drive-the-chess-grandmaster-toward-tragedy/

Daniel Naroditsky’s death takes a dark turn as police probe possible su***de and online feud links. The chess world mourns a prodigy gone too soon.