United States of America Ex Rel. Roy Schuster, Relator-Appellant v. Ross E. Herold, M.D., Director of Dannemora State Hospital, Dannemora, New York

IRVING R. KAUFMAN, Circuit Judge:

We have, thankfully, come a long way from the days when ignorance induced fear of the mentally ill. As great strides in psychiatric knowledge have been paralleled by evolving concepts of due process, humane procedures for the commitment and treatment of the mentally ill have replaced snake pits and witch hunts. The time has long since passed when a mere charge that one was “possessed by demons” would automatically result in banishment for insanity.

Petitioner’s allegations in this proceeding must be weighed against this background of gradual development. These…