Government

Mental Illness Grounds for Denying Entrance to U.S.?

There are a slew of reasons why those crossing the border — either way — between Canada and the United States may be stopped or denied entrance. Here’s a new one: mental illness.

CBC News Canada has the story:

More than a dozen Canadians have told the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office in Toronto within the past year that they were blocked from entering the United States after their records of mental illness were shared with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

. . .

According to diplomatic cables released earlier this year by WikiLeaks, any information entered into the national Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) database is accessible to American authorities.

One such person was Lois Kamenitz, 65, of Toronto. Kamentiz tried to enter the United States and went through secondary screening where a customers officer revealed he had a note that police had entered her home. Before she could enter the United States, she had to obtain medical clearance:

“I was really perturbed,” Kamenitz says. “I couldn’t figure out what he meant. And then it dawned on me that he was referring to the 911 call my partner made when I attempted suicide.”

Dozen or More Canadians Have Been Denied U.S. Access Due to Mental Illness Records

Lois Kamenitz of Toronto was 'perturbed' when she was denied entrance to the United States due to a police note about her attempted suicidefour years earlier. (Photo: Sarah Bridge/CBC)

CBC goes on to report Stanley Stylianos, program manager at the Psychiatric Patient Advocate Office, as saying he has heard of more than a dozen similar cases happening at the border and receives calls from those worried they could be stopped:

RCMP Insp. Denis St. Pierre says information on CPIC not only contains a person’s criminal record, but also outstanding warrants, missing persons reports and information about stolen property, along with information regarding persons of interest in ongoing cases. It also can contain individuals’ history of mental illness, including suicide attempts.

The database contains anything that could alert authorities to a potential threat to public safety and security, and all CPIC information is available to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, St. Pierre says. There are a few exceptions, including information regarding young offenders, which is not available to American authorities.

“If a person is a danger to themselves and the police are dealing with that person in another jurisdiction … it’s valuable information, knowing that perhaps this person may harm themselves,” St. Pierre says.

CBC contacted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security but they did not respond to their request.

[H/T Drudge Report]

Comments (101)

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  • gator gil
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 9:54am

    Fifty percent of the folks who voted for Obama must be mental.Along with those who voted for Pelosi and Reed.

    Report Post »  
    • old white guy
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 2:28pm

      i like that 50% who voted for obama are mentally ill. jeez, flordia will go broke if we mentally ill canadians can’t come down for the winter. oh, wait, flordia is going broke because of obama.

      Report Post »  
    • StonyBurk
      Posted on September 11, 2011 at 8:30am

      What a world– I agree most of them who voted for Barry Soetoro aka Barak Hussein Obama I ought be considered either Beguiled– or for those who still defend him and his policies -Demented. That being said it should be remembered HIV/AIDS is a communicable disease that can kill -or cause a life sentence worse than alcoholism-or nicotine addiction. Yet we consider having HIV/AIDS a known factor in allowing a foreigner come in ahead of anyone else? which is more a threat to the nation someone who may–or may not harm themself–or someone who is known to carry a deadly communicable disease?

      Report Post »  
    • Ruler4You
      Posted on September 11, 2011 at 11:07am

      You have to be joking? right? mental illness? because ‘they might harm themselves’? The U.S. government PAYS “refugees” from terrorist nations to come here. The U.S. government whole heartedly permits anti american islamist paramilitary encampments to train RIGHT HERE IN THE U.S.! Tell me, who’s mentally ill, now? I’m losing track..?

      Report Post » Ruler4You  
  • BSdetector
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 9:30am

    We cant ban psychos from this country, the whole Democrat party would just wither away!

    Report Post » BSdetector  
    • SREGN
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 11:16am

      I was wondering why Cynthia McKinney seems to be stuck in the Middle East.

      Report Post »  
  • NuffSaid
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 8:34am

    Maybe it’ll keep you out of the US, but you can still join the Democratic Party.

    Call Debbie Watcherbutt-Schitz at 1-800-Do me, somebody please.

    Report Post »  
  • RichEG
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 8:02am

    Perhaps we should include citizens who are progressives, they are a danger to themselves and others.

    Report Post » RichEG  
  • Jezcruzen
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:37am

    If mental illness is a valid reason to deny entry into the country, then remember that when “Big Sis” attempts to re-enter after an out-of-country trip. She definitely qualifies as mentally ill, as does most of Obama’s administration.

    Report Post »  
    • jimay
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 9:38am

      I figure Big-Sis must have a canadian relative she’s not speaking to these days.

      Report Post »  
  • teddrunk
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:31am

    Why pick on mental illness? Mental illness never stopped Biden from becoming VP.

    Report Post »  
    • one years food ration like glenn says
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 8:33am

      Or Harry Reid , Nothing ever stopped him from becoming and staying Senate Majority Leader or getting voted back into office … And that guy is as unstable as they come.. All you have to do is look into his eyes and you can just see the mental instability, never even mind what comes out of his mouth…

      Report Post » one years food ration like glenn says  
    • Zorro6821
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 10:20am

      So let me get this correct. We let in illegals form the most poverty stricken areas of the world. We leave wide open borders to the south and never question an illegal aliens mental condition. But now our largest trading partner and ally in fighting wars In Afgan, WW11 etc we insult them with this “mental” disorder excuse. Do you ever wonder why we are hated throughout the world. Deport Granny and import the lawbreakers. I quess now that we learned that 40% of Europeans have a mental disorder, they no-longer can visit the USA. I think there is something very sinister at play. I hope it not reverse racism.

      Report Post »  
  • SamIamTwo
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:28am

    Personally I would like to give credit to our border patrol folks who are trying to protect us.

    And if you had asked them in 2003 what should we do…the agents would tell you, “send in the Marines”…“we are at war”.

    You guys really want more crazy people? We let them run free in the US and they should be institutionalized…but the liberals want these zombies on your streets…they are commonly known as the homeless. JIMHO

    HC for all. lol…they are too crazy, they will get better HC.

    SamIamTwo  
    • loriann12
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 8:54am

      They can stop the mentally ill from Canada, because they applied. If they were like the Mexicans or al-quada, they would just cross the border and we would be none the wiser.

      Report Post »  
    • Kangana
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 3:47pm

      I once had a homeless man threaten to blow my head off. I was at work and working alone and no one else was in the store so I called the police. I was told that the police knew of this guy and had several run-ins with him. They also told me they couldn’t do anything with him because he was a vet and mentally ill, and he had been placed in a mental facility before but he was so dangerous they had to “let him out” and there was no where else for the city to put him. Great. So, he’s too violent for a mental institution so he gets to run the streets? He stalked me for a few months after that and I had to call the police several times. I say spend time and resources getting crazy Americans off the streets then worry about a grandma from Canada who tried to off herself once visiting some relatives in LA. Hell, in LA she’d probably be the sanest person there.

      Report Post »  
    • The Gooch
      Posted on September 11, 2011 at 1:29pm

      To Kangana:
      I’m cautious in accepting your scenario. It denies a probable cause process in the state in question. It has been my experience that dangerously mentally ill veterans actually have more ready access to resources and inpatient treatment (even if they must be compelled into treatment) than the civilian population,
      Any cop who confronts a dangerously mental ill person & states there’s nothing the state can do is either poorly trained & ignorant, too stupid to know his/her job or willfully choosing to neglect his/her role in not only protecting the public but also the mentally person in question.
      You mentioned CA. In that state, a cop can pursue what is known as 5150. This is a process that allows the cop to request detainment for up to 72 hours for further evaluation.
      State facilities would review a patient’s disposition on a codified schedule. To asset a patient was “so dangerous they had to “let him out” & there was no where else for the city to put him” flies in the face of reason. If deemed an ongoing threat due to mental illness, states can & do perpetually hold respondents. As long as the state is periodically allowing the person his/her day in court, there is no mandate to release the violently mentally ill.
      So you never had your options in dealing with this person explained to you? If that’s true, once again that’s a failure on the part of law enforcement & the legal system.
      If this is true, it’s shameful.

      Report Post »  
  • TomFerrari
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:18am

    I would imagine that we are attempting to screen for mentally unstable people, along with people who are unable to care for themselves, and could be a burden on others here in the U.S., but, primarily (given the state of things) for security purposes.

    I’d MUCH rather we err on the side of caution, even if it means a DELAY to a foreign visitor to these United States.
    .
    .
    .
    Now…

    ABOUT THAT SOUTHERN BORDER…
    .
    .
    .
    kind of hypocitical, huh?

    Report Post » TomFerrari  
    • SamIamTwo
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:31am

      I know some BP agents and they are working 12-14 hour days…and they aren’t after the lettuce puller, they are after the high priority thugs and criminals that cross the border by the hour.

      Watch NatGeo Border Wars. They do a good job of showing and explaining how they go about rounding them up.

      Report Post » SamIamTwo  
  • duane38637
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 3:54am

    Obama dont want Canadians he wants Samolians,Muslims and all Africans anyone else FORGET IT!

    Report Post »  
    • chazman
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 6:21am

      … what our frozen bretheren to the North must think of us … we really blow, eh?

      Report Post »  
    • Jackers
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:03am

      Oh, I see… While this government leaves our southern border wide open to mass illegal immigration, rampant crime and corruption, drug cartels and an endless supply of hard drugs, these same “experts” decide to tighten up our northern border to Grandmas on anti-depressants in the name of “safety.”

      Give me a break!

      Report Post » Jackers  
    • TomFerrari
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:19am

      You forgot Mexicans.

      Report Post » TomFerrari  
    • TomFerrari
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:19am

      … and Chinese.

      Report Post » TomFerrari  
    • CatB
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 7:22am

      Those rascally Canadians … trying to come and bring their good manners here .. that will teach them.

      TEA!

      Report Post »  
    • fatjack
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:01pm

      Why not set a 75 IQ standard? Oh, my bad, they would have to export obama’s auntie and uncle.

      Report Post » fatjack  
    • old white guy
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 2:32pm

      chazman, i think it’s suck eh.

      Report Post »  
  • Captain Crunch
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 3:17am

    They let crazy Canadian truck drivers in the country all the time.

    Report Post »  
    • chazman
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 5:04pm

      … we’re just a pack of hosers, eh?

      Report Post »  
  • W@nd@
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 2:40am

    really who is more nuts?
    Looks like we have crazzzzzies running the country?
    If this wasn’t so pathetically beyond the pail…
    it would almost seem like a comedy routine..
    except
    it is FAR from funny!

    Report Post »  
  • NOT A CRAZY
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 1:34am

    They just need to fly to Mexico and then they can come on in with no questions asked. What a hypo. We are a bunch of fools.

    Report Post » NOT A CRAZY  
  • lobo91
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 1:23am

    There is nothing in this story to indicate that “medical records” are being shared with law enforcement.

    The woman was required to go through additional screening (not “barred from entry”) due to a record of contact with law enforcement that had to be clarified.

    Total non-story…

    Report Post »  
  • stage9
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 1:09am

    “Mental Illness Grounds for Denying Entrance to U.S.?”

    Well then where does this leave liberals????

    liberalism is an obvious mental illness yet stupid people keep electing them to government.

    Report Post » stage9  
  • sullinsea
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:56am

    The crazies of the Marielitos were okay to let in but not the Loyalist Canucks? What’s that about, eh? Eric Cartman in charge of this at DHS?

    Report Post »  
    • Elena2010
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:59am

      Or the floods of illegal aliens coming across our southern borders!

      Report Post » Elena2010  
  • Boola519
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:42am

    huh. we thought Canada sneered at us lowly Colonials. so now their nutjobs want IN here? USA has always had strict entry policy, going back to Ellis in 1892, you even have a sniffle and you DIDN’T get in.

    Report Post »  
    • TXPilot
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:54am

      Yep, no crossing the border if you are crazy…….we only let terrorists in……standards must be maintained, after all.

      Report Post » TXPilot  
  • sullinsea
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:41am

    So … this means 40% of Europeans will be denied entrance?

    http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/04/us-europe-mental-illness-idUSTRE7832JJ20110904

    Report Post »  
  • miles from nowhere
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:37am

    There are so many mentally ill people in the US already we do not need any more.

    Report Post »  
  • dthomps6
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:35am

    Liberalism is a mental illness

    Report Post » dthomps6  
  • davida61
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:32am

    What’s one more nut case in this country? Being nuts is celebrated here in the states. Watch reality TV lately? “Rich” housewives with blown up lips with suicidal husbands. How about the broad that tied her naked self up like a hog tied pig and then hung herself? (Suicide they called it). She was either super talented in knot making or certifiable mental. Love that Dr. Drew‘s Celebrity Rehab that doesn’t work but makes Dr. Drew very rich. Catch that Casey Anthony and her crazy family? Charles Manson, John Wayne Gacy, and that cute flesh eating Jeff Dahmer. If you aren’t confused by a fat dancing he/she Chaz Bono then maybe you can explain it to me. We have law makers in Washington passing bills without reading them that include wide eyed racist socialists Sheila Jackson-Lee and Maxine Waters. That thug Al Sharpton got his own TV show and I bet his best friend Geraldo Riveria (who claims he’s a Republican but talks like a wound seeping liberal Democrat) gave him an excellent reference. Women and children disappear or get murdered in alarming numbers on a daily basis. Then there is the show Hoarders and last but not least Jersey Shore. In fact, you have to be crazy to even want to cross the border into this country. If you aren’t crazy at that point, you will be soon. Here’s some advice, back up and step away from the border. Run, run very fast and don’t look back or you will be turned into a pillar of salt.

    Report Post »  
    • one years food ration like glenn says
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 8:42am

      WOW dude , Geraldo Riveria doesn’t claim to be a republican or conservative his claims just the opposite and is proud of it.. Just because he works on FOX news doesn’t mean he is a republican.. Don’t know where you got that from. Anyway, I’m glad to help you out.. BTW, it was a great post, course until you hit the Geraldo area..

      Report Post » one years food ration like glenn says  
  • kindling
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:20am

    I know of a family up from Mexico that is now trying to get their adult son, that is mentally ill, SSI. They get green cards for the entire family and those people go out and take construction jobs that are not seasonal and would pay well for an American, well enough that they have now bought a home.

    Report Post » kindling  
  • iheartusa
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:20am

    Let’s concentrate on the real, serious border problems and they are not with Canada!

    Report Post » iheartusa  
    • Zorro6821
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 10:33am

      All those Canadian Terrorists. I know they are everywhere spreading hate like Beiber, Celine Dione, Neil Young, Peter Jenning, Mark Steyn, Mort Zukerman, Charles Krauthammer, Pam Anderson, James Cameron, Donald Sutherland, Allanis Morisette, William Shatner,Michael Bulble etc. They are Canadain fundamentalists. Be afraid, be very afraid.

      Report Post »  
  • Rowgue
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:13am

    Oh and just for the record the first line of the story is completely wrong and misleading. She wasn’t actually denied entry because of mentall illness. She was denied entry because there was an incident that involved law enforcement action in her history and they had to confirm that there wasn’t a criminal act involved first.

    Report Post »  
  • Rowgue
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:10am

    Why is this a story? Yes a history of mental illness disqualifies you from immigrating to the US, and it has ever since we established an immigration policy.

    When did this pie in the sky idea that anyone and everyone is supposed to be allowed to immigrate somewhere simply because they want to.

    Report Post »  
    • Zorro6821
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 11:23am

      Rowque…She was not trying to immigrate…she was trying to visit.

      Report Post »  
    • Zorro6821
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 11:29am

      Rowque…Please read beyond the headlines. Immigration and visiting are two separate things. I am always amazed at how the blazers can’t seem to comprehend beyond headlines. The Granny had zero intention of living here, so there is no burden on our society.

      Report Post »  
  • Exrepublisheep
    Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:03am

    Yes, enforce it. People with medical difficulties can place a huge strain on services wherever they go.

    Report Post » Exrepublisheep  
    • LinkedIn G
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:16am

      They let Obama in …

      Report Post » LinkedIn G  
    • davida61
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:36am

      LINKEDIN G
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 12:16am
      They let Obama in …

      That’s a good one. I love it!!!

      Report Post »  
    • Rational Man
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 2:33am

      It didn’t stop Obama from becoming president. And he is a bigger drain on services than anyone!

      Report Post » Rational Man  
    • Zorro6821
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 11:34am

      What and idiotic statement. So people with mental disorders from other countries should never be allowed to visit, relatives. How nuts is that. I think Exrepublisheep should be deproted for being a crazy blogger. That has to be just about the stupidest post I read in a long time.

      Report Post »  
    • EcceCrucemDomini
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 6:00pm

      According to the constitution government isn’t supposed to be offering “services.”

      Report Post »  
    • woodyl1011fl
      Posted on September 10, 2011 at 9:05pm

      Liberalism/progressivism is mental disorder and we have enough of these mentally ill Bolshevik democrat party voters now don’t let anymore in!

      Report Post »  
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