ABSTRACT
Bruce Ennis attended the opening meeting to review the provisions of the judgment, but offered few suggestions. More surprisingly, Orrin Judd did not, either then or later, communicate with the members to spell out his expectations. In the absence of binding instructions, the personalities and commitments of the members became decisive, and a solid majority of them were uncompromising critics of institutions. Department of Mental Hygiene, unlike Bruce Ennis, gave short shrift to making its appointments to the panel, as if by disposing of the business quickly it could make the panel disappear. Thomas Coughlin complied, skillfully maneuvering to grab the reins of power, worn and tattered as they were. He immediately recognized that his own ambitions were intertwined with the judgment. Mental Retardation eventually broke off from Mental Hygiene to become a separate department called the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities (OMRDD), and he became its first commissioner.
