BILL ANALYSIS
SB 851
Page 1
Date of Hearing: July 3, 2007
Counsel: Kimberly A. Horiuchi
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Jose Solorio, Chair
SB 851 (Steinberg) - As Amended: June 27, 2007
SUMMARY : Authorizes superior courts to develop and implement
mental health courts, as specified, which may operate as a
pre-guilty plea program and deferred entry of judgment program
and allows parolee participation in mental health court, as
specified. Specifically, this bill :
1)States the following objectives for mental health court:
a) Increase cooperation between the courts, criminal
justice, mental health, and substance abuse systems.
b) Creation of a dedicated calendar or a locally developed
collaborative court-supervised mental health program or
system that contains the characteristics set out in this
legislation that will lead to placement of as many mentally
ill offenders, including those with concurring disorders,
in community treatment, as is feasible and consistent with
public safety.
c) Improve access to necessary services and support.
d) Reduce recidivism.
2)States that mental courts shall have the following
characteristics:
a) Leadership by a superior court judicial officer assigned
by the presiding judge.
b) Enhanced accountability by combining judicial
supervision with rehabilitation services that are
rigorously monitored and focused on recovery.
c) A problem solving focus.
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d) A team approach to decision-making.
e) Integration of social and treatment services.
f) Judicial supervision of the treatment process, as
appropriate.
g) Community outreach efforts.
h) Direct interaction between defendant and judicial
officer.
3)Requires in developing mental health court, the presiding
judge, or his or her designee shall convene the county
stakeholders, develop a plan that is consistent with
provisions of this bill, as specified.
4)Mandates the plan developed by the presiding judge and the
county stakeholders must at a minimum address the following
components:
a) The method by which the mental health court will ensure
that the target population of defendants will be identified
and referred to the mental health court.
b) The method for assessing defendants for serious mental
illness and co-occurring disorders.
c) Eligibility criteria specifying what factors will make
the defendant eligible to participate in a mental health
court, including the amenability of the defendant to
treatment and the facts of the case, as well as prior
criminal history and mental health and substance abuse
treatment history.
d) The elements of the treatment and supervision programs.
e) Standards for continuing participation in, and
successful completion of, the mental health court program.
f) The need for the county mental health department and the
drug and alcohol department to provide initial and ongoing
training for designated staff on the nature of serious
mental illness and on the treatment and supportive services
available in the community.
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g) The process to ensure defendants will receive the
appropriate level of treatment services, based on available
resources, from county and community mental health
providers and other local agencies.
h) The process for developing a treatment plan for each
defendant, based on a formal assessment of the defendant's
mental health and substance abuse treatment needs.
Participation in the mental health court would require
defendants to complete the recommended treatment plan, and
comply with any other terms and conditions that will
optimize the likelihood that the defendant will complete
the program.
i) A process for referring cases to the mental health
court.
j) A defendant's voluntary entry into the mental health
court, the right of a defendant to withdraw from the mental
health court, and the process for explaining these rights
to the defendant.
5)States in developing a mental health court program, each
mental health court team, led by a judicial officer, should
include, but is not limited to, a judicial officer to preside
over the court, prosecutor, public defender, county mental
health liaison, substance abuse liaison, and probation
officer. The mental health court team will determine the
frequency of ongoing reviews of the progress of the offender
in community treatment in order to hold the offender
accountable to adhere to the treatment plan as recommended,
remain in treatment and complete treatment.
6)States in utilizing a dedicated mental health court calendar,
each mental health court team will include, but is not limited
to, a designated judicial officer to preside over the court,
prosecutor, public defender, county mental health liaison,
substance abuse liaison, and probation officer. The mental
health court team, led by the judicial officer, will determine
the frequency of ongoing reviews of progress of the offender
in community treatment in order to hold the offender
accountable to adhere to the treatment plan as recommended,
remain in treatment and complete treatment.
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7)Authorizes the court to operate a pre-guilty plea program,
wherein criminal proceedings are suspended without a plea of
guilty for designated defendants.
8)States if the court finds that the defendant is not performing
satisfactorily in the assigned program, that the defendant is
not benefiting from education, treatment, or rehabilitation,
or that the defendant has engaged in criminal conduct
rendering him or her unsuitable for the pre-guilty plea
program, the court shall reinstate the criminal charge or
charges. If the defendant has performed satisfactorily during
the period of the pre-guilty plea program, at the end of that
period, the criminal charge or charges shall be dismissed and
relevant provisions of the diversion statutes shall apply.
9)Allows a mental health court to operate as a deferred entry of
judgment program. If the defendant is found eligible, the
prosecuting attorney shall file with the court a declaration
in writing or state for the record the grounds upon which the
determination is based, and shall make this information
available to the defendant and his or her attorney.
10)States the deferred entry of judgment procedure is intended
to allow the court to set the hearing for deferred entry of
judgment at the arraignment. If the defendant is found
ineligible for deferred entry of judgment, the prosecuting
attorney shall file with the court a declaration in writing or
state for the record the grounds upon which the determination
is based, and shall make this information available to the
defendant and his or her attorney.
11)Provides the sole remedy of a defendant who is found
ineligible for deferred entry of judgment is a post-conviction
appeal. If the prosecuting attorney determines that deferred
entry of judgment may be applicable to the defendant, he or
she shall advise the defendant and his or her attorney in
writing of that determination.
12)Requires the notification provided to the defendant of the
deferred entry of judgment (DEJ) include the following:
a) A full description of the procedures for deferred entry
of judgment.
b) A general explanation of the roles and authorities of
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the probation department, the prosecuting attorney, the
program, and the court in the process.
c) A clear statement that in lieu of trial, the court may
grant deferred entry of judgment provided that the
defendant pleads guilty to each charge and waives time for
the pronouncement of judgment, and that upon the
defendant's successful completion of a program the positive
recommendation of the program authority and the motion of
the prosecuting attorney, the court, or the probation
department, the court shall dismiss the charge or charges
against the defendant and provisions of the diversion
statutes shall apply.
d) A clear statement that upon failure of treatment or
condition under the program the prosecuting attorney or the
probation department or the court on its own may make a
motion to the court for entry of judgment and the court
shall render a finding of guilty to the charge or charges
pled, enter judgment, and schedule a sentencing hearing.
e) An explanation of criminal record retention and
disposition resulting from participation in the deferred
entry of judgment program and the defendant's rights
relative to answering questions about his or her arrest and
deferred entry of judgment following successful completion
of the program.
13)States a mental health court may operate as a post-guilty
plea program wherein the defendant has entered a guilty plea
or has been sentenced and is on probation. If the defendant
has performed satisfactorily during the period of the
post-guilty plea program at the end of that period, the
criminal charge or charges shall be dismissed and the
provisions of the existing diversion statute shall apply.
14)Provides that the California Department of Corrections (CDCR)
may contract with a superior court and county to utilize
mental health courts as a program for parolees with serious
mental illness who either violate the terms of parole or
receive new terms, as an alternative to custody.
15)States that if the parolee successfully completes the mental
health court program, parole or probation will end. If the
parolee fails to successfully complete the mental health court
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program, he or she will be sentenced by the judicial officer
according to existing law as to any case pending in the
superior court and CDCR will take any action provided by law.
16)Requires the highest priority for referrals of parolee
offenders shall be given to those offenders who are on active
parole and have a pending case in superior court.
17)Declares a system of care for parolees with serious mental
illness results in the highest benefit to the client, family,
and society while ensuring that the public sector meets its
legal responsibility and fiscal liability at the lowest
possible cost.
18)States the underlying philosophy for these systems of care
shall include the following:
a) Mental health care is a basic human service.
b) Seriously mentally ill parolees usually have multiple
disorders and disabling conditions.
c) Seriously mentally ill parolees should be assigned a
single person or team to be responsible for all treatment,
case management, and support services.
d) The client should be fully informed and volunteer for
all treatment provided, unless danger to self or others or
grave disability requires temporary involuntary treatment.
e) Clients and families should directly participate in
making decisions about services and resource allocations
that affect their lives.
f) Mental health services should be responsive to the
unique characteristics of people with serious mental
illness including age, gender, minority, and ethnic
background, and the effect of multiple disorders.
g) Treatment, case management, and support services should
be designed to prevent inappropriate removal to more
restrictive and costly placements.
h) Mental health systems of care shall have measurable
goals and be fully accountable by providing measures of
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client outcomes and cost of services.
i) State and county government agencies each have
responsibilities and fiscal liabilities for seriously
mentally ill parolees.
19)States a mental health system of care for parolees with
serious mental illness is vital in providing greater benefit
to parolees with serious mental illness at a lower cost than
state prison in California and should encompass all of the
following:
a) A comprehensive and coordinated system of care including
treatment, early intervention strategies, case management,
and system components required by parolees with serious
mental illness.
b) The recovery of persons with severe mental illness and
their financial means are important for all levels of
government, business, and the community.
c) System of care services that ensure culturally competent
care for persons with serious mental illness in the most
appropriate, least restrictive level of care are necessary
to achieve the desired performance outcomes.
20)States the adult system of care model, begun through the
implementation of Chapter 617, Statutes of 1999, and expanded
by Chapter 518, Statutes of 2000, provides models for parolees
with serious mental illness that can meet the performance
outcomes required by the Legislature.
21)Declares using the guidelines and principles developed under
the demonstration projects implemented under the adult system
of care model, it is the intent of the Legislature to
accomplish the following:
a) Encourage the CDCR's Division of Adult Parole Operations
to implement a system of care as described in this article
for the delivery of mental health services to seriously
mentally ill parolees.
b) To promote a system of care accountability for
performance outcomes that enable parolees with serious
mental illness to reduce symptoms that impair their ability
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to live independently, work, maintain community supports,
care for their children, stay in good health, not abuse
drugs or alcohol, and not commit crimes.
c) Provide funds for mental health services and related
medications, substance abuse services, supportive housing
or other housing assistance, vocational rehabilitation, and
other non-medical programs necessary to stabilize mentally
ill prisoners and parolees, reduce the risk of being
homeless, get them off the street and into treatment and
recovery, or to provide access to veterans' services that
will also provide for treatment and recovery.
22)Mandates CDCR create a pilot program to provide comprehensive
mental health and supportive services comparable to the case
management and services available, as specified, to 100
parolees with a serious mental illness in each of three
separate parole regions.
23)States first priority shall be given to parolees who, while
incarcerated, were deemed part of the Enhanced Outpatient
Program who will likely become homeless upon release. The
second priority for funding shall be given to remaining
parolees who, while incarcerated, were in the Enhanced
Outpatient Program. The third priority for funding shall be
given to parolees who, while incarcerated, were in the
Correctional Clinical Case Management System who will likely
become homeless upon release. The fourth priority for funding
shall be given to remaining parolees who, while incarcerated,
were in the Correctional Clinical Case Management System.
24)States parolees who will likely become homeless upon release
are individuals who will lack an identified fixed, regular,
and adequate nighttime residence upon release or whose only
identified nighttime residence includes a supervised publicly
or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary
living accommodations or a public or private place not
designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping
accommodation for human beings.
25)Requires CDCR in consultation with the Department of Mental
Health to establish service standards that ensure that
prisoners with a serious mental illness, as specified, are
identified, and services are provided to assist them to be
able, upon release, to live independently, work and reach
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their potential as productive citizens. CDCR shall provide
annual oversight of service for compliance with these
standards, as specified.
26)States these standards shall include, but are not limited to,
all of the following:
a) A service planning and delivery process that is target
population based and includes specified elements.
b) Each client shall have a clearly designated mental
health personal services coordinator who may be part of a
multidisciplinary treatment team who is responsible for
providing or assuring needed services. Responsibilities
include complete assessment of the client's needs,
development of the client's personal services plan, linkage
with all appropriate community services, monitoring of the
quality and follow through of services, and necessary
advocacy to ensure each client receives those services that
are agreed to in the personal services plan. Each client
shall participate in the development of his or her personal
services plan and responsible staff shall consult with the
designated conservator if one has been appointed, and, with
the consent of the client, consult with the family and
other significant persons as appropriate.
c) The individual personal services plan shall ensure that
members of the target population involved in the system of
care receive age, gender, and culturally appropriate
services, to the extent feasible, as specified.
d) The individual personal services plan shall describe the
service array that meets the requirements of the individual
personal service plan, and to the extent applicable to the
individual, the specified elements of the service planning
and delivery process.
27)Provides the service planning and delivery process shall
include the following:
a) A service planning and delivery process that is target
population based and includes specified elements.
b) Determination of the number of clients to be served and
the programs and services that will be provided to meet
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their needs.
c) Plans for services, including design of mental health
services, coordination and access to medications,
psychiatric and psychological services, substance abuse
services, supportive housing or other housing assistance
for parolees, vocational rehabilitation, and veterans'
services.
d) Plans shall also contain evaluation strategies that
shall consider cultural, linguistic, gender, age, and
special needs of minorities in the target populations.
e) Provision shall be made for staff with the cultural
background and linguistic skills necessary to remove
barriers to mental health services due to limited
English-speaking ability and cultural differences.
f) Provisions for services to meet the needs of target
population clients who are physically disabled.
g) Provision for services to meet the special needs of
elder adults.
h) Provision for family support and consultation services,
parenting support and consultation services, and peer
support or self-help group support if appropriate for the
individual.
i) Provision for services to be client-directed and that
employ psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery principles.
j) Provision for psychiatric and psychological services
that are integrated with other services and for psychiatric
and psychological collaboration in overall service
planning.
aa) Provision for services specifically directed to
seriously mentally ill young adults 25 years of age or
younger that are at significant risk of becoming homeless.
bb) Services reflecting special needs of women from diverse
cultural backgrounds, including supportive housing that
accepts children, personal services coordinator,
therapeutic treatment, and substance abuse treatment
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programs that address gender specific trauma and abuse in
the lives of persons with serious mental illness, and
vocational rehabilitation programs that offer job training
programs free of gender bias and sensitive to the needs of
women.
cc) Provision for housing for parolees that is immediate,
transitional, or permanent.
28)Requires that the individual personal service plans are to be
designed to enable recipients upon release to:
a) Live in the most independent, least restrictive housing
feasible in the local community, and, for clients with
children, to live in a supportive housing environment that
strives for reunification with their children or assists
clients in maintaining custody of their children as is
appropriate.
b) Engage in the highest level of work or productive
activity appropriate to their abilities and experience.
c) Create and maintain a support system consisting of
friends, family, and participation in community activities.
d) Access an appropriate level of academic education or
vocational training.
e) Obtain an adequate income.
f) Self-manage their serious mental illness and exert as
much control as possible over both the day-to-day and
long-term decisions that affect their lives.
g) Access necessary physical health care and maintain the
best possible physical health.
h) Reduce or eliminate serious antisocial or criminal
behavior and thereby reduce or eliminate their contact with
the criminal justice system.
i) Reduce or eliminate the distress caused by the symptoms
of mental illness.
j) Have freedom from dangerous addictive substances.
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29)Requires services are to be available to parolees who have
serious mental illness who meet the eligibility criteria
specified in existing law.
30)States funding shall be provided at sufficient levels to
ensure that each facility and parolee center can provide each
parolee served, as specified, with the medically necessary
mental health services, medically necessary medications to
treat serious mental illnesses, alcohol and drug services,
transportation, supportive housing and other housing
assistance, vocational rehabilitation and supported employment
services, money management assistance for accessing other
health care and obtaining federal income and housing support,
accessing veterans' services, stipends, and other incentives
to attract and retain sufficient numbers of qualified
professionals as necessary to provide the necessary levels of
these services.
31)States this program shall not rely upon any other state or
county funding not expressly authorized. This program however
shall pay for that portion not covered by Medi-Cal, Medicare,
SSI or any other entitlement to the individual being served.
32)Provides CDCR's Division of Adult Parole Operations shall
provide for services in accordance with the system of care for
parolees who meet the eligibility criteria within the Welfare
and Institutions Code.
33)Requires planning for services are to be consistent with the
following philosophies, principles, and practices:
a) To promote concepts key to the recovery for individuals
who have serious mental illness: hope, personal
empowerment, respect, social connections,
self-responsibility, and self-determination.
b) To promote consumer operated services as a way to
support recovery.
c) To reflect the cultural, ethnic, and racial diversity of
mental health consumers.
d) To plan for each consumer's individual needs.
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34)States CDCR, in order to develop comprehensive case
management plans consistent with the Mental Health Services
Continuum Program, shall establish prison in-reach protocols
that include collaboration and cooperation with service
providers who are likely to serve program participants in the
designated counties.
35)Provides that prior to the release of each program
participant, the department shall work with each participant,
the relevant integrated service provider, the relevant housing
provider, and other relevant providers to develop a discharge
plan that includes:
a) Stable and affordable housing that is appropriate to
serve the individual's needs, including permanent
supportive housing where necessary. In the event that
permanent affordable housing is not available, a
participant may be placed in transitional supportive
housing, and the integrated service provider selected
pursuant to the above mentioned philosophies, principles
and practices shall develop a plan to place the participant
in permanent supportive housing before the end of the
parole period.
b) Job placement or application for federal or state
benefit entitlements including, but not limited to, Social
Security Disability Insurance, Supplemental Security
Income, veterans' benefits, CalWORKs, Medicaid, food stamps
or general relief with the goal of income or benefits being
available immediately upon release.
c) Application for federally, state, or locally funded
housing assistance programs.
d) Obtainment of state-issued identification.
36)Requires that CDCR establish an advisory committee for the
purpose of providing advice regarding the development of the
identification of specific performance measures for evaluating
the effectiveness of programs. The committee shall review
evaluation reports and make findings on evidence-based best
practices and recommendations. At not less than one meeting
annually, the advisory committee shall provide to the
department written comments on the performance of each of the
programs.
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37)States the committee shall include, but not be limited to,
representatives from state, county, and community veterans'
services and disabled veterans outreach programs, supportive
housing and other housing assistance programs, law
enforcement, county mental health and private providers of
local mental health services and mental health outreach
services, the Board of Corrections, the Department of Alcohol
and Drug Programs, local substance abuse services providers,
CDCR, providers of local employment services, the Department
of Social Services, the Department of Housing and Community
Development, a service provider to transition youth, the
United Advocates for Children of California, the California
Mental Health Advocates for Children and Youth, the Mental
Health Association of California, the National Alliance on
Mental Illness (NAMI) California, the California Network of
Mental Health Clients, the Mental Health Planning Council, and
other appropriate entities.
38)Provides that in consultation with the advisory committee the
department shall report to the Legislature on or before May 1
of each year in which additional funding is provided, and
shall evaluate, at a minimum, the effectiveness of the
strategies for parolees in reducing homelessness, recidivism,
involvement with local law enforcement, and other measures
identified by the department.
39)States the evaluation shall include for each program funded
in the current fiscal year as much of the following as
available information permits:
a) The number of persons served, and of those, the number
who receive extensive community mental health services.
b) The number of persons who are able to maintain housing,
including the type of housing and whether it is emergency,
transitional, or permanent housing, as defined by the
department.
c) The amount of funding spent on each type of housing and
other local, state, or federal funds or programs used to
house clients.
d) The number of persons with contacts with local law
enforcement and the extent to which local and state
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incarceration has been reduced or avoided.
e) The number of persons participating in employment
service programs including competitive employment.
f) The amount of hospitalization that has been reduced or
avoided.
g) The extent to which veterans identified through these
programs' outreach are receiving federally funded veterans'
services for which they are eligible.
h) The extent to which programs funded for three or more
years are making a measurable and significant difference on
the street, in hospitals, and in jails, as compared to
other programs and in previous years.
40)States CDCR may receive technical assistance from the
Department of Mental Health.
41)Authorizes CDCR to contract with counties or private
providers for the provision of any of the services described
in this bill. Methods to contract for services shall promote
prompt and flexible use of funds, consistent with the scope of
services for which CDCR has contracted with each provider.
42)Includes police, sheriffs and judges in the list of persons
who may receive outreach services based on likelihood of
contact with untreated mentally ill patients.
43)States the third priority for funding mental health services
shall be those who are discharged from a jail or have
successfully completed parole.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires that the Department of Mental Health (DMH) establish
service standards that ensure that members of the target
population are identified, and services provided to assist
them to live independently, work, and reach their potential as
productive citizens. DMH shall provide annual oversight of
grants issued pursuant to this part for compliance with these
standards. These standards shall include, but are not limited
to, a service planning and delivery process that is target
population based and includes the following:
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a) Determination of the numbers of clients to be served and
the programs and services that will be provided to meet
their needs. The local director of mental health shall
consult with the sheriff, the police chief, the probation
officer, the mental health board, contract agencies, and
family, client, ethnic and citizen constituency groups as
determined by the director.
b) Plans for services, including outreach to families whose
severely mentally ill adult is living with them, design of
mental health services, coordination and access to
medications, psychiatric and psychological services,
substance abuse services, supportive housing or other
housing assistance, vocational rehabilitation, and
veterans' services. Plans shall also contain evaluation
strategies that shall consider cultural, linguistic,
gender, age, and special needs of minorities in the target
populations. Provision shall be made for staff with the
cultural background and linguistic skills necessary to
remove barriers to mental health services due to limited
English-speaking ability and cultural differences.
Recipients of outreach services may include families, the
public, primary care physicians, and others who are likely
to come into contact with individuals who may be suffering
from an untreated severe mental illness who would be likely
to become homeless if the illness continued to be untreated
for a substantial period of time. Outreach to adults may
include adults voluntarily or involuntarily hospitalized as
a result of a severe mental illness.
c) Provisions for services to meet the needs of target
population clients who are physically disabled.
d) Provision for services to meet the special needs of
older adults.
e) Provision for family support and consultation services,
parenting support and consultation services, and peer
support or self-help group support, where appropriate for
the individual.
f) Provision for services to be client-directed and that
employ psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery principles.
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g) Provision for psychiatric and psychological services
that are integrated with other services and for psychiatric
and psychological collaboration in overall service
planning.
h) Provision for services specifically directed to
seriously mentally ill young adults 25 years of age or
younger who are homeless or at significant risk of becoming
homeless. These provisions may include continuation of
services that would still be received through other funds
had eligibility not been terminated due to age.
i) Services reflecting special needs of women from diverse
cultural backgrounds, including supportive housing that
accepts children, personal services coordinator therapeutic
treatment, and substance treatment programs that address
gender specific trauma and abuse in the lives of persons
with mental illness, and vocational rehabilitation programs
that offer job training programs free of gender bias and
sensitive to the needs of women.
j) Provision for housing for clients that is immediate,
transitional, permanent, or all of these.
aa) Provision for clients who have been suffering from an
untreated severe mental illness for less than one year, and
who do not require the full range of services but are at
risk of becoming homeless unless a comprehensive individual
and family support services plan is implemented. These
clients shall be served in a manner that is designed to
meet their needs. [Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC)
Section 5806(a)(1) to (9).]
2)States each client shall have a clearly designated mental
health personal services coordinator who may be part of a
multidisciplinary treatment team who is responsible for
providing or assuring needed services. Responsibilities
include complete assessment of the client's needs, development
of the client's personal services plan, linkage with all
appropriate community services, monitoring of the quality and
follow through of services, and necessary advocacy to ensure
each client receives those services which are agreed to in the
personal services plan. Each client shall participate in the
development of his or her personal services plan, and
responsible staff shall consult with the designated
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conservator, if one has been appointed, and, with the consent
of the client, consult with the family and other significant
persons as appropriate. [WIC Section 5816(b).]
3)Provides that the director shall establish an advisory
committee for the purpose of providing advice regarding the
development of criteria for the award of grants, and the
identification of specific performance measures for evaluating
the effectiveness of grants. The committee shall review
evaluation reports and make findings on evidence-based best
practices and recommendations for grant conditions. At not
less than one meeting annually, the advisory committee shall
provide to the director written comments on the performance of
each of the county programs. Upon request by the department,
each participating county that is the subject of a comment
shall provide a written response to the comment. The
department shall comment on each of these responses at a
subsequent meeting. [WIC Section 5814(b).]
4)Mandates the advisory committee include, but not be limited
to, representatives from state, county, and community
veterans' services and disabled veterans outreach programs,
supportive housing and other housing assistance programs, law
enforcement, county mental health and private providers of
local mental health services and mental health outreach
services, the Board of Corrections, the Department of Alcohol
and Drug Programs, local substance abuse services providers,
CDCR, providers of local employment services, the State
Department of Social Services, the Department of Housing and
Community Development, a service provider to transition youth,
the United Advocates for Children of California, the
California Mental Health Advocates for Children and Youth, the
Mental Health Association of California, the California
Alliance for the Mentally Ill, the California Network of
Mental Health Clients, the Mental Health Planning Council, and
other appropriate entities. [WIC Section 5814(c).]
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's statement : According to the author, "The missing
element of corrections reform is mental health care. This
bill looks at the continuum of an offender's experience from
pre-booking to post-parole and provides for mental health
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needs when appropriate. The proposed remedies are based on
importing the Systems of Care approach, which has been proven
effective by objective evaluation and solid performance
measures. The solution in this bill is in routing mentally
ill offenders into services as early as possible, thereby
treating their needs, stabilizing their illness, increasing
their ability to fully incorporate into the living situation
around them, and reducing the likelihood that they will
re-offend."
2)Mental Health Courts in California : According to information
available on the Judicial Council's Web site on mental illness
courts, "Crises in community mental health care and the
long-term effects of de-institutionalization, the drug
epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s, the dramatic increase in
homelessness over the last two decades, and widespread jail
overcrowding have all led to an increase in mental health
courts. Mental health courts were profiled in the May-June
2001 issue of 'Court News'. The article noted that since 1984
California county jail populations nearly doubled, from 43,000
to 80,000 inmates, while those with serious mental illness
increased nearly fivefold, from 3% to a range of 11 to 15%.
"Like drug courts, mental health courts focus on treatment to
restore health and reduce criminal activity. They focus on
providing mentally ill offenders with better access to
treatment, consistent supervision, and support to reconnect
with their families. The biggest challenges in mental health
courts are in the areas of training, funding, and the
management of complex cases. Thirteen California trial court
systems reported having mental health courts in operation or
planned as of July 2002.
"Common elements in mental health courts are:
a) "Participation in a mental health court is voluntary.
The defendant must consent to participation before being
placed in the program.
b) "Each jurisdiction accepts only persons with
demonstrable mental illnesses to which their involvement in
the criminal justice system can be attributed.
c) "The key objective of a mental health court is to either
prevent the jailing of mentally ill offenders or to secure
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their release from jail for appropriate community services.
d) "Public safety is a high priority, and mentally ill
offenders are carefully screened for appropriate inclusion
in the program.
e) "Early intervention is essential, with screening and
referral occurring either immediately after arrest or up to
a maximum of three weeks after arrest.
f) "A multidisciplinary team approach is used, with the
involvement of justice system representatives, mental
health providers, and other support systems.
g) "Intensive case management includes supervision of
participants, with a focus on accountability and monitoring
of each participant's performance.
h) "The judge is the center of the treatment and
supervision process.
"In 2001, Los Angeles implemented a mental health court for
misdemeanor cases, including typical quality-of-life crimes
such as possessing a shopping cart. After arrest, a mental
health service provider conducts an assessment to determine
general needs and whether the defendant is homeless. Unlike
drug courts, once the defendant is accepted into the program,
he or she participates in 'status hearings' with the provider,
not with the court. The only time the defendant shows up at
court is when, after one year of being clean and sober and not
committing a new offense, his or her case is dismissed. The
mental health court has created linkages with a variety of
social services, such as job training and GED exam
preparation.
"In January 1999, San Bernardino County's mental health court
began as a pilot program in the superior court, with the
Supervised Treatment after Release (STAR) Program as its
primary component. The court admits participants facing
misdemeanor or felony charges who have serious mental health
problems (true violent offenders are not eligible). Once a
defendant is deemed competent and shows a willingness to
participate in the program, he or she enters a guilty plea and
is placed on probation for two years in misdemeanor cases and
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three years in felony cases. San Bernardino County's program
is designed to place mentally ill offenders in the appropriate
services and to move them from intensive services to less
intensive levels of care when success is demonstrated in the
earlier phases. Once an individualized treatment plan has
been developed, most participants are released into an
augmented board-and-care residential treatment facility, which
provides intensive supervision to ensure they are attending
psychiatric counseling, stabilizing on medication, and abiding
by the terms of their probation. In the courtroom, the mental
health court's proceedings closely resemble those of a drug
court. As in a drug court, upon successful completion of the
program the plea may be withdrawn, the charges dismissed, and
the record expunged through a petition to the court. This
mental health court differs from some others in its close
resemblance to the drug court model treatment process,
including the use of jail as a sanction.
"On January 4, 2001, Riverside County began a mental health
court in the Hall of Justice in downtown Riverside. The
purpose of the court is the proper treatment and placement of
criminal defendants with mental health issues upon a plea of
guilty, with the aims of reducing recidivism, relieving jail
overcrowding, and treating the mentally ill more
appropriately. The court also addresses issues of criminal
incompetence and LPS (Lanterman-Petris-Short Act)
conservatorships or probate conservatorships if those options
pertain to a criminal matter.
"In a mental health court, the two systems work together to
ensure that each defendant has the best possible opportunity
to comply with his or her terms of probation and stay with the
medical treatment program. Mental health treatment terms-such
as medication, substance abuse placement, psychiatric visits,
and counseling-are made mandatory probation terms. The
defendant is made aware that failure to comply means further
incarceration. All defendants are placed on formal probation,
and the probation officer is aware of all the mental health
treatment terms and receives a copy of the defendant's mental
health evaluation.
"The Riverside County Mental Health Court operates out of two
courtrooms, Departments 33 and 34. Department 33 is domestic
violence court, and Department 34 is drug court. These courts
were chosen because of the correlation among domestic
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violence, drug abuse, and mental illness. Together, these
courts are referred to as the CAF (crimes affecting families)
courts.
"The mental health court in Santa Clara County was established
in 1999 to serve pre-conviction and post-conviction
defendants. Mental health caseworkers are present in the
courtroom as part of the mental health court team. Substance
abuse assessment and treatment are immediately available to
the team. Dually diagnosed cases or those involving traumatic
head injury or severe mental illness receive case management
services directly from mental health counselors in the
courthouse. The core principle of the mental health court is
affirmation and acknowledgment of progress. Both Los Angeles
County and Santa Clara County also have juvenile mental health
courts in addition to their adult mental health courts.
"In 2002, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA) offered $8 million in grant funding
for mental health courts. Other funding for these court
programs is provided through the California Board of
Corrections' Mentally Ill Offender Crime Reduction (MIOCR)
grant program, grants for mentally ill homeless under
California Assembly Bill 2134, and through grants from the
Administrative Office of the Courts."
[www.courtinfo.ca.gov/programs/collab/mental]
Updated information provided by the Judicial Council states,
"As of May 2007 there are 39 identified mental health or dual
diagnosis courts. There are 30 mental health courts and 9
dual diagnosis/mental health courts. Of the 39, three are in
planning/early implementation stages. The 39 mental
health/duel diagnosis courts represent 28 counties/superior
courts."
3)Parolees and Mental Health Court : This bill provides that
parolees who suffer with mental illness shall be eligible for
mental health court services as well. The language of this
bill authorizes CDCR to contract with local mental health
courts for alternative sanctions where a mentally ill
defendant faces a parole violation. As a general matter,
parolees facing revocation are not returned to court on the
revocation. The California Supreme Court stated, "Under Penal
Code Section 3060, the Adult Authority (CDCR) is given 'full
power to suspend, cancel or revoke any parole without notice,
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and to order returned to prison any prisoner on parole.' The
sole statutory restriction upon the power to revoke parole is
section 3063, which provides that 'no parole shall be
suspended or revoked without cause, which cause must be stated
in the order suspending or revoking the parole'." [ In re
Tucker (1974) 5 Cal. 3d 171]. The offender is entitled to a
hearing on both the temporary detention and the actual parole
violation. [ People vs. Arreola (1994) 7 Cal.4th 1144, 1152].
The Board of Parole Hearings decides how the defendant will be
sentenced. While alternatives to prison for mentally ill
offenders makes sense, it is unclear how CDCR will contract
with the newly created mental health courts to deal with an
offender over whom it has no jurisdiction. Perhaps it makes
more sense to authorize or require CDCR to sentence mentally
ill parole violators to a host of alternative sanctions aimed
at treating the root of the mental illness.
4)Arguments in Support : According to the California Psychiatric
Association states, "SB 851 would provide incentives to the
State for the expansive of mental health courts which provide
for post-booking diversion of eligible mentally ill defendants
and for services to provide treatment in the community under
deferred sentencing arrangements made by the court.
"The involvement of the legal system in providing supervision is
successful precisely because it acknowledges the fact that
many of these individuals are untreated because they lack
insight to acknowledge their illness, and as a consequence
refuse voluntary treatment. Mental health courts offer a way
out of revolving door arrest, incarceration, hospitalization
and in some cases violence, and offer individuals a chance to
reclaim their lives from untreated mental illness. SB 851
offers a way to reduce both fiscal and human impact on
communities of untreated mentally ill offenders.
"Mental health courts will help overcome prison crowding
conditions by a addressing the 32,000 estimated prisoners with
mental illnesses, many of whom would not be in prison if they
had access to effective community based mental health
treatment. Mental health courts will also assist county jails
with approximately 12,000 defendants housed for the same
reasons. Mental health courts provide a more cost-effective
and more humane alterative to people who have had the
misfortune to suffer from the biologically based and
genetically influenced disorders of the brain we commonly call
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mental illness. Mental illnesses are real, they are
treatable, treatment is cost-effective but for treatment to be
effective it must be delivered. Mental health courts do
that."
5)Arguments in Opposition : According to the California District
Attorneys Association , "Unfortunately, this bill lacks detail
in several important areas. The diversion program envisioned
by this bill is allowed to operate without a defendant
entering a plea or making an admission of guilt.
Additionally, criteria for participation in the program are
absent and there is no statutory hurdle to prevent persons
suspected of crimes like murder or kidnapping, to name only
two, from falling within the eligibility for the program.
These programs are not bound by any minimum time periods for
participation and completion of the diversion programs occurs
when unspecified criteria are met. Rather than clearly
delineating the details, criteria and operating constraints of
these programs, the bill directs the presiding judge and a
group of person called 'county stakeholders' to determine a
plan that will govern the operation of the mental health
court. Clarity should be a core feature of any statute and
this bill leaves too many questions unanswered."
6)Related Legislation : SB 391 (Ducheney) creates the Community
Corrections Program and Parole Violation Intermediate
Sanctions programs within CDCR. SB 391 is scheduled to heard
in this Committee today.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, California
Division
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
California Catholic Conference
California Council of Community Mental Health Agencies
California Medical Association
California Psychiatric Association
California Public Defenders Association
California Society for Clinical Social Work
Crestwood Behavioral Health
Drug Policy Alliance Network
Friends Committee on Legislation
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Mental Health Association in California
Mental Health Association in San Diego County
Mental Health Association in Santa Barbara County
NAMI California
Peace Officers Research Association of California
Sacramento Advocates
Sylmar Health & Rehabilitation Center
Opposition
California District Attorneys Association
Citizens Commission on Human Rights
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Horiuchi / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744