In Miga, the police found Sandra Smigiel in an intoxicated condition. They placed her in a cell without taking the precautions that the situation warranted under the Massachusetts statute authorizing protective custody. They also failed to investigate shouts from other detainees that Smigiel was trying to kill herself. She succeeded in committing suicide. Although the Miga court found that Smigiel's constitutional substantive due process rights were violated, such retrospective justice is of little help to Smigiel. Protective custody is often necessary to prevent people from harming themselves or others, but the police must exercise strict precautions to assure that detainees are not harmed and that their substantive due process rights are not violated. The revised statute should communicate clearly what the police must do and must not do. It should also provide severe sanctions for noncompliance. 215 footnotes.