*requires Acrobat Reader. Click here to obtain a free copy

Nearly 30 years of litigation in Alabama ended Friday, January 21, 2000, as Governor Don Siegelman announced a settlement in the long-running Wyatt lawsuit against the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation.

"When I took office as governor, my first directive to Mental Health Commissioner Kathy Sawyer was to begin negotiating an end to this litigation," Siegelman said. "And now we can say: We did it." I am pleased to announce the settlement of the longest running mental health case in the nation.

"This settlement is good for the State of Alabama, because it saves us from having to continue to pay exorbitant legal fees. It is good for Alabama, because it wrests control from Federal Courts, which have overseen our own Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation. And this settlement is good for Alabama, because it removes an albatross from our necks that has severely tarnished the image of this state. But most importantly, this settlement is good because it ensures mental health and mental retardation patients and clients receive the care they deserve."

Commissioner Kathy Sawyer is also very pleased. "I cannot express how hard staff members in the department have worked to see this case finally ended. This ongoing litigation has been a drain on our budget, our staff time, our emotions and our pride," she said.

The case, originally styled Wyatt v. Stickney (Stonewall Stickney was the commissioner at the time) was filed on October 23, 1970 on behalf of Ricky Wyatt, a resident at Bryce Hospital in Tuscaloosa. It was eventually expanded to include a class of people involuntarily committed to the department’s residential facilities (Bryce Hospital, Searcy Hospital in Mt. Vernon and Partlow State School and Hospital in Tuscaloosa).

Judge Frank M. Johnson presided in the case, issuing his landmark ruling in 1972 that established minimum standards for care and treatment, which eventually became a model for developing other healthcare standards across the nation.

--more--

Kathy Sawyer is very familiar with the lengthy history of the Wyatt case. Before being appointed commissioner of the department by Governor Siegelman in January 1999, Mrs. Sawyer served as the department’s Director of Advocacy Services. That office was developed in response to a 1986 consent decree, an agreement among parties in the Wyatt case that included establishing an internal advocacy effort and a monitoring committee to determine progress in complying with the terms of the decree. Mrs. Sawyer was one of five members of that committee.

When asked what made the difference that allowed the parties to reach a settlement this time when previous efforts had failed, Commissioner Sawyer said there were a number of factors. "The timing was right, the parties were ready, the court indicated a desire for us to reach a settlement, and the Governor was determined that we work until all issues were resolved. We could not have reached this agreement without Governor Siegelman’s leadership and his support."

She also said, "I think we reached a level of trust and understanding and realized that it is in everyone’s interest to settle this case and move on. Now we can collectively work to address the needs of Alabama’s citizens who have mental illness, mental retardation and substance abuse problems. It is a good day for this department and a good day for Alabama."

"I see this settlement agreement as especially significant in what it doesn’t require," Sawyer said. For example, the agreement does not require a court monitor, any formal process for outside monitoring or any monitoring fees. Neither does it require the closure of any state facility.