This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

On September 3, 1992, a preliminary hearing concerning the petition for D's involuntary treatment was held. D was committed to the North Dakota State Hospital under a temporary treatment order for a period of 14 days. On September 16, 1992, an involuntary treatment hearing was held. The county court found that D 'suffers from a mental illness, which substantially impairs his capacity to use self-control, judgment, and discretion, and that there is a substantial likelihood of substantial harm to himself as demonstrated by past acts which indicate that he is not able to take advantage of things available to him outside the State Hospital.' The court entered an order requiring that D receive a maximum of 90 days of treatment at the North Dakota State Hospital. The record demonstrated that D is suffering from a mental illness and without treatment, D's mental health would be at a substantial risk of deterioration. The record indicates that D may be a danger to himself, though most likely not a danger to others or to property. The danger to himself is centered around his homelessness and his ability to take care of himself, such as his resourcefulness in getting food and proper nutrition, and his propensity to seek out shelter during the winter months in North Dakota. All three witnesses expressed concern that because D was a recent arrival from the deep South he was not aware of the severe cold that the winter season may bring to North Dakota and would not seek appropriate food and shelter. D did not take advantage of the shelter a caseworker had arranged and instead took shelter in abandoned buildings. He talked about obtaining a hotplate, and the fact that he once placed food he received from a private organization in a garbage dumpster because, according to the witness, he could not remember where he obtained the food and was afraid to eat it, D was in good physical condition, thus indicating an ability to care for himself under circumstances that many of us would consider adverse. D appealed.

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