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OtherANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY

Hoarding, Hermitage, and the Law: Why We Love the Collyer Brothers

Kenneth J. Weiss
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online June 2010, 38 (2) 251-257;
Kenneth J. Weiss
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Abstract

Interest in hoarding behavior has intensified, as it works its way through DSM-V deliberations and treatment models. Meanwhile, both documentarians and fiction writers have embraced accounts of individuals with disposophobia and romanticized versions of the Collyer brothers, the Hermits of Harlem. In this article, I examine the range of media and professional attention given to hoarders and their problems and then focus on a potential role for forensic mental health professionals. The psycholegal problems of hoarders include health and zoning code violations that evolve into criminal charges, civil commitment, questions of animal cruelty, landlord-tenant disputes, divorce and custody evaluations, testamentary capacity, and child-neglect charges.

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Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online: 38 (2)
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online
Vol. 38, Issue 2
June 2010
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Hoarding, Hermitage, and the Law: Why We Love the Collyer Brothers
Kenneth J. Weiss
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online Jun 2010, 38 (2) 251-257;

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Hoarding, Hermitage, and the Law: Why We Love the Collyer Brothers
Kenneth J. Weiss
Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online Jun 2010, 38 (2) 251-257;
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    • Parsing Syllogomania
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