Cole

DISCUSSION

Cole argues that because the extended commitment petition was filed too late for trial on the petition to be held before expiration of his current commitment under section 6500, equal protection demanded his release from custody, a right granted to those committed under two other civil commitment statutes. Statutory Background California has multiple procedures for involuntary commitment of those with various mental problems who pose a threat to their own welfare or the safety of others. (People v. Barrett (2012) 54 Cal.4th 1081, 1093 (Barrett).) At issue here are three of these statutory schemes. The first is the one under which Cole was confined, section 6500, which authorizes civil commitment of “[a] person with a developmental disability . . . if the person is found to be a danger to self or others.” (§ 6500, subd. (b)(1).) Developmental disability, in this context, means a “disability that originates before an individual attains 18 years of age, continues, or can be expected to continue, indefinitely, and constitutes a substantial disability for that individual”; this definition expressly encompasses an intellectual disability. (§§ 4512, subd. (a)(1), 6500, subd.…