Q: Can the mental hospital that released a patient days before he murdered my grandmother, be held liable?
In 1964 my great grandmother was shot and killed by a man who was having a psychotic episode that included hallucinations. He had been released from a mental hospital just a few days before. This happened in New Hampshire. Can the hospital be held liable for prematurely releasing him?
A:
Unfortunately, the short answer is no. That is because of the statute of limitations. In other words, it's too late to bring a case as this happened almost 60 years ago.
If you were within the statute of limitations, this would have been a case worth investigating. If the hospital broke protocol or otherwise needlessly endangered the public by releasing someone they new to be psychotic and violent, they more likely than not would have had at least some liability.
I hope this is helpful.
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