text: what is baker acting, like committing someone? if i know that someone is causing danger to themselves and others and would like to take action and help this person, is baker acting the way. how would a person go about doing it and what legal rights should this person have over the other, like husband and wife. "the symptoms of borderline personality disorder, while not normally associated with a substantial loss of the capacity to reason, can include brief periods of parapsychotic behaviors, while the rageful impulsivity associated with the disorder can also frequently escalate into episodes of physical violence.   situations can indeed arise with bpd that necessitate summoning police or emergency aid in order to protect the sufferer from the risk of "causing harm to self or others" (the standard legal clause in most us states underwriting involuntary commitment)."  baker acting comes from "florida's baker act which was the first us state law passed to ensure a legal foundation for commitment to psychiatric care regardless of the desires of the person with mental illness, and since its enactment, others such as new york's 'kendra's law' have followed suit. despite this legislative validation, intense debates over the public need for "baker acting" continue to emerge in american communities, with strong arguments to be made both pro & contra. commitment orders can be obtained for outpatient treatment, as well.  more info on site below.