According to a recent draft report issued by the Judicial Council’s Task Force for Criminal Justice Collaboration, about a quarter of California’s jail and prison inmates have been diagnosed with serious mental illness. Prisoners under probation were twice as likely to commit another offense if they are mentally ill and there was a 36% likelihood for them to violate their terms of release. That’s how the program for treatment came about for substance abusers. They are given psychiatric medication, meeting occasionally with their caseworkers to weigh progress.

Thanks to San Francisco County’s Behavioral Health court, a judge doles encouragement to prisoners who are in the comprehensive treatment on a weekly basis.

The reality is mental health courts are seeing measured success and are quickly gaining credibility.

In the courtroom, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Garrett Wong’s prevalent praise rings in the courtroom as the group applauds. The provision involves facilitate housing, vocational training, counseling and other forms of help for around 140 clients, facilitated by mental health caseworkers. Participation in the treatment is voluntary and the crime committed must be linked to the prisoners’ mental illness. Succeeding in the program can have one’s records forever removed from the books whilst serious and repeat offenders are removed from the program and go back to jail.

According to the Judicial Council’s Administrative Office of the Courts, there are 41 mental collaborative health courts in 29 California counties. This figure is higher, from 21 courts four years ago. The council’s task force includes draft recommendations: that each county adopt a comparable approach that fits its needs.
Hank Steadman, was the study’s lead writer in a published a study examining other courts including San Francisco’s court.

The study can be found in the Archives of General Psychiatry. He found the courts were relayed consistent evidence and that they were good for public safety. It also found that of all those examined San Francisco’s court served the highest number of patients with schizophrenia. A high percentage of those people committed crimes against people instead of property.

Yet San Francisco’s program had the greatest success rate, showing the highest drop among the four courts in re-arrests compared to control groups, and a 39% reduction. Also, the control group returned to incarceration for longer time spans than participants in mental health courts.

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