Suspicious, paranoid, explosive, aggressive, defiant. Details from Richard Hollis’ Baker Acts
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Guilty of Grief
A Miami Herald series about a police shooting of a young man lays bare Florida’s broken mental health system.
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From July 2021 through January 2022, Richard Hollis was involuntarily committed nine times, generating 10 hospital admissions. These are excerpts from the Miami-Dade Police Department’s Baker Act cases and more than 2,000 pages of hospital records from those admissions reviewed by the Miami Herald for the Guilty of Grief series:
July 15, 2021: Richard is not sleeping or eating anything but raw meat and his mother Gamaly Hollis calls police. Hollis tells officers Richard has been waiting for an imaginary girlfriend to arrive so they can whisk away together in a Mustang – which he doesn’t own and cannot drive. He is abusing drugs, and admits to Kendall Regional Medical Center staff that he planned to kill himself with an overdose. Four days later, staff write: “Calculated suicide risk level: HIGH RISK.” Richard is suspicious, paranoid, explosive, aggressive and defiant. Hospital staff release him five days after he’s brought in.
July 27, 2021: Police bring Richard to Kendall Regional following a 911 call from his mother. He has not been taking his medication, and was throwing food and drinks around the house. Police say Richard is “acting extremely paranoid,” adding: “Mr. Hollis believes everyone is threatening him and thinks the government is watching him.” At the hospital, Richard is described as “very combative, both verbally and physically lashing out at staff [and] saying vulgarities.” He is in the midst of an “episode of acute psychosis.” But after only three days, Richard announces he is “ready to go home.” And though records say he won’t take his meds or cooperate with treatment after he’s left, they discharge him to his mother.
Sept. 2, 2021: Police are called to the Hollis home for a possible overdose. Officers say Richard has a “blank stare” and is “laughing uncontrollably.” Richard is taken to Kendall Regional in handcuffs under the Baker Act. His commitment papers say he had “a glazed look, was swaying back and forth, acting erratic, would not speak, [was] not alert,” could not walk without assistance, [and] was extremely aggressive when restraining him.” Hollis tells officers “this is not normal for him, and without help he would die.” His behavior is reported to be aggressive and bizarre. He appears to be discharged to a psychiatric hospital for additional treatment.
Sept. 9, 2021: Richard is admitted to Southern Winds Hospital, a psychiatric facility in Hialeah, after being discharged by Kendall Regional. Administrators ask a judge for permission to hold him against his will. The petition is illegible, but doctors checked boxes saying there was a likelihood Richard “will inflict serious bodily harm” upon himself or others, and is unable to determine for himself” that treatment is necessary. It is unclear how long Richard remained in treatment before being released.
Sept. 13, 2021: Officers are called to Peppermill Apartments to deal with “a violent male with a knife.” When officers arrive, Hollis tells them her son is “being violent and acting irrational.” She warns officers Richard had a knife and “would defend himself against officers.” Hollis tells them, once again, that Richard is not taking his meds. He’s left the apartment by the time police arrive, but he is found quickly inside the complex and taken to Kendall Regional under the Baker Act.
Oct. 18, 2021: Richard is admitted to Kendall Regional following a Baker Act. Records say Hollis sought help after Richard, having abused drugs and not slept for four days, went into a rage, tearing the house apart and destroying furniture. “You are all evil,” Richard says to the officers. “If you come inside my apartment, I will shoot all of the officers.” When he arrives at the hospital, Richard is aggressive, and yells at hospital staff: “My mom was lying…I’ve got a note from my doctor saying I don’t have any mental problems. I’m gonna sue you all!” Richard is transferred to a psychiatric facility around Oct. 25.
Oct. 25, 2021: Richard is admitted to Southern Winds for treatment. In a petition seeking permission to hold him against his will, Richard is described by a psychiatrist as “grandiose” and “paranoid.” He also is reportedly hearing voices. A second doctor writes that Richard is “delusional” and talking to himself. It is unclear how long Richard remains at Southern Winds.
Dec. 14, 2021: Richard is admitted to Kendall Regional on a Baker Act. Hollis tells a police officer that Richard took a bottle of allergy pills and another bottle of cough medicine in a suicide attempt. He was found walking down the street with his mom “chasing him.” At admission, Richard is described as “dirty,” “hostile,” and “paranoid.” His symptoms include delusional and bizarre behavior, aggression and acute psychosis. Records say Richard “had not been coping well with the fact his son died” – referring to Richard’s delusional family. Hospital records say Richard “is in massive denial” about his drug abuse and “grossly psychotic.” He is sent home around Dec. 20, 2021.
Christmas Eve, 2021: Police take Richard to Kendall Regional following a 911 call from his mother – only four days after the last Baker Act. He appears to be severely psychotic and he hasn’t been sleeping or taking his medications. ”My mom called the police on me again,” he tells a doctor. “I was having an argument…she [acted] like I was going to kill her.” Richard has “anger problems” and has been making threats. “He has been involved in physically fighting other individuals. He throws objects when angry.” Richard is described as bizarre and disheveled, with delusions and “violent ideations.” He is released around Dec. 29, 2021.
Jan. 25, 2022: Police drive Richard to Kendall Regional after he is found “barricading himself and holding his mother against her will inside their apartment.” Richard is angry and hostile and has “persecutory delusions.” Hospital notes say Richard “continues to be defiant, explosive and with [a] proclivity for violence.” He is described as a “high-risk patient.” “Maybe I was yelling at my mom, but she is always against me,” he tells hospital staff. The next day after his admission, he agrees to stay in the psych unit voluntarily, but he is sent home on Jan. 28. The hospital’s discharge summary says Richard is to “resume” his psychiatric medications – though hospital records also state that Richard is “non-compliant” with his meds.
This story was originally published November 14, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
