BOULDER (AP)
A new secure facility at the Montana Developmental Center will offer more supervision for mentally ill or developmentally disabled people who are deemed a danger to themselves or others. Clients are expected to move in by the end of the month. The $2.5 million Assessment and Stabilization Unit was opened to the public Tuesday. It includes three residential cottages that will house up to 12 clients, along with an administration and treatment-center building. It replaces a locked unit that was created as a temporary security measure in 2003 after an unfavorable survey by the Center for Medicaid Services. "I'm hoping this unit is more supportive for people who have been in our locked unit," said Kathy Zeeck, superintendent of MDC. "We want to make sure that what we're doing is good treatment. It will help us do a better job of serving the people who live here." Residents of the new facility will include an autistic man sentenced to MDC for 30 years for murdering two people. The Legislature changed the commitment law in 2003 to allow criminal commitments to MDC of individuals who are determined to be developmentally disabled. The new facility combines safety and security features with an open, airy and light-filled environment. The windows, which do not open, are made of a security Plexiglas. Each cottage has four bedrooms with a common kitchen and living area. There are also two bathrooms and a laundry room in each cottage.
