In the Matter of the Apprehension of David Lawaetz

OPINION OF THE COURT

JAMES HUNTER, III, Circuit Judge:

Appellant David Lawaetz (“Lawaetz”) was declared mentally ill and committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Health of the Virgin Islands pursuant to an order of the District Court of the Virgin Islands. On appeal he challenges the facial validity and the actual application of the statute under which his status was adjudicated. Lawaetz also asserts an equal protection claim based on the apparent co-existence of two different statutory methods for determining mental illness and ordering commitment. Lawaetz argues that the standards…