Laura's Law is California’s state law that provides community-based, assisted outpatient treatment (AOT) to a small population of individuals who meet strict legal criteria and who – as a result of their mental illness – are unable to voluntarily access community mental health services. The law is named for Laura Wilcox (pictured), who was shot and killed at the age of 19 by a man with untreated severe mental illness.
Laura’s Law and similar AOT laws across the country have successfully enabled people with severe mental illness to access the treatment they need in the community.
California needs your help! Each California county must independently authorize Laura's Law to implement AOT. If your county has not yet authorized Laura’s Law, AOT is unavailable to people in need in your county. To join the effort to implement Laura's Law in your county, email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
What You Can Do:
Write to your county supervisor - tell them the time to implement is now! Click here to find contact information for your county supervisors.
- See the sample letter for individuals or for organizations.
- Advocate for change using these strategies.
- Fight common misconceptions about Laura's Law with facts.
- Educate others with our one-page Laura's Law fact sheet.
- Review our AOT implementation guide.
Learn more about Laura’s Law:
- FAQs about Laura's Law
- Video profiling Nevada County’s success implementing Laura’s Law and all the good it’s doing!
- "A Guide to Laura's Law"
- Laura's Law flowchart – a graphic representation of how Laura's Law works
AOT works!
- AOT reduces the consequences of untreated severe mental illness
- AOT decreases violence
- AOT saves money