Richard's Story: Compassion, Not Criminalization

​By Anonymous NSSC Member

Richard* always had a deep connection to nature. He enjoyed fishing and kayaking. He was the kid who took home the school pets on weekends—a leopard gecko and two hermit crabs. He loved playing with his niece and nephew, and treasured family camping trips under the stars. 

On August 27, 2020, when Richard was twenty-five, everything changed. Richard suffered a devastating break with reality and became psychotic. In a terrifying moment, he strangled me, his own mother.

Moments later, when he realized what he had done, he called 911 for help. He sat with me until the ambulance crew and police arrived. I spent three nights in the hospital, grappling with both physical and emotional injuries.

We live in Massachusetts, a state that does not understand or appropriately respond to psychosis, a no-fault brain illness symptom. Instead of receiving the urgent medical help he needed, my son was treated as a criminal. The District Attorney charged Richard with attempted murder. 

Richard languished in jail—a cold, non-therapeutic environment that is devastating for someone battling serious mental illness. He was released from jail on his own recognizance in September 2020. This meant that he was set free without having to pay bail, based on his promise to return to court when required and to comply with any other conditions set by the court.

In October 2021, the Assistant District Attorney (ADA) requested a twenty-day psychiatric evaluation at Bridgewater State Hospital (BSH)—a facility run by the Department of Corrections--which the judge approved. Richard was taken to BSH straight from court. The court never gave him a chance to get his bills paid or house situated, and he lost his job. 

After the evaluation, BSH released Richard home. Soon after, the ADA found that Richard was deteriorating again. The judge would send him to BSH a second time, for forty days before being released home. 

Richard learned to anticipate chaos. He quit his new job and set his bills to autopay, preparing for yet another sudden upheaval as the next court hearing approached. 

Each time, BSH would release him home, saying that he was not a danger to himself or others. During one of these stays at BSH, Richard developed a terrifying delusion. He believed that accepting medication would kill him. This took root after he overheard the ADA recount a story in court about a man who had been strapped to a gurney, medicated, and later died. 

After Richard was released from BSH in March 2024, he became convinced the ADA wanted him dead. In desperation, he sent 132 emails to the ADA—pleading, reasoning, and begging for his life.

A warrant for Richard’s arrest was issued on July 9th due to the emails. After spending a night in jail, he appeared in court. These emails became the basis for new criminal charges—harassment, stalking, intimidation of a witness, and threatening a public official. The same ADA prosecuting his original case filed these charges. 

On July 10th, the judge ordered Richard back to BSH for a "16A evaluation"—a legal assessment to determine whether he was competent to stand trial or not criminally responsible due to serious mental illness. This took three months, at which time he was found incompetent to stand trial.

Richard was then committed to BSH for six months under a Roger’s Order. This allowed the administration of involuntary medication due to his inability to make informed decisions. He remained at BSH for nine and a half months until a hearing in March 2025 determined whether he remained a danger to the community. 

Competency was restored. On April 6, 2025, BSH released him back to jail, where he stayed until May 29th, without receiving medically-necessary treatment for his psychosis. Richard was released home to my custody. 

With a private attorney now representing my son, all of the motions filed were denied at the dangerousness hearing:

The motion to remove the ADA from the case due to a conflict of interest—denied. 

The motion to move Richard’s case to another county because all involved in the original case were involved with the new charges—denied. 

The motion to dismiss the case for violation of due process—denied. 

The judge released the BSH psychiatric evaluation unredacted and without our knowledge to the jail, the probation office, and the ADA office. Richard’s attorney argued that we were never given the chance to present our case to hold the report until redacted, but the judge only shrugged her shoulders.

His attorney has repeatedly tried to meet with the ADA to address safety concerns and outline the steps we've taken to protect everyone involved, but he has been met with silence and stalling. We never went to trial, and stood before the district court.

Richard pleaded guilty to four felonies and one misdemeanor. Twenty years of jail time was the only alternative. The ADA agreed to reduce the charge from attempted murder to assault and battery with strangulation and bodily injury. The judge ordered three years of probation. 

Living through this has been emotionally shattering. The toll—financially, emotionally, and spiritually—has been immense. The cost of repeated court hearings has far exceeded what it would have taken to provide Richard with consistent, community-based treatment. 

I do not believe the court was looking to help my son but only to get a guilty plea and settle the case. The system’s indifference traumatizes not just individuals but entire families. My husband and I nearly divorced under the weight of it. Counseling kept us together, but many families aren’t so lucky.

That’s why we keep speaking out. 

We won’t stop telling our story until Massachusetts chooses compassion over punishment for people with brain disorders.
 
Psychosis is a medical emergency. It cannot be treated with handcuffs and jail cells.

Yet, Massachusetts and Connecticut remain the only two states without Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) laws, which allow court-ordered care for those too ill to recognize their need for help. 

What will it take for Massachusetts to allow AOT? How many more families must suffer before we prioritize humane treatment over incarceration?

Today, Richard has found the strength to rebuild in the community. He has returned to his apartment and works as a banquet server. With prayer and perseverance, we hope the next two years on probation will pass peacefully and that our family can finally be free from the grip of the court system.

Recovery is possible—but only if we offer care instead of punishment.

*Name changed for privacy