Supported Decision-Making: Protecting Rights, Ensuring Choices

How would you feel if you had no say in where you live or work, on what you can spend money, or with whom you can spend time? The denial of such fundamental freedoms—the building blocks of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness—without extraordinarily compelling reasons violates our bedrock moral and legal codes. To safeguard liberty, for example, we pledge that “it is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer”2 and provide evaluations and treatment for those thought to be incompetent to stand trial.