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February 25, 2005Mental Health Courts Spreadingfiled under Government/Legal & Bipolar Disorder
With the number of people with bipolar disorder in jail skyrocketing in the past decade (while, coincidentally, hospital facilities and resources available to treat the mentally ill have fallen dramatically) its on a rare positive note that people are finally recognizing the special needs of the mentally ill when it comes to minor criminal offenses. This week Harris County, Texas, judges may create a mental health court to provide specialized legal consideration and treatment for those with diseases such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and psychotic episodes. Harris county's felony court judges have asked the Legislature for $236,000 for a full-time court coordinator and a mental health expert. The move is an attempt to expand an existing informal mental health program. "We need to give appropriate treatment for people who are sick, and these people are just sick," state District Judge Jan Krocker told the Houston Chronicle. "They are not going to make their probation if they don't get extra encouragement and extra supervision. If we can help all these people on probation, they won't have to go to jail." The judge hopes the Harris County mental health court could be operational by September. The mental health court would be similar to Harris County's drug court created in 2003. The judges are looking at the court as an alternative to save money and reduce crime in the face of dwindling prison and jail space in Texas. In Idaho they are also setting up mental health courts. The Idaho court was started by Judge Brent Moss. He told ABC News that he "tired of seeing drug addicts sent to prison, without treatment, when many were trying to self-medicate to control a mental illness they did not understand." The judge realized that mentally ill defendants were not getting the help they needed and he thought they were getting in prison. "I was naive," Moss said to ABC News.
Advocates are starting to change this now. In the US, NAMI seems to have been pushing this as an issue hard (Thanks to Ron Honberg's and others in the NAMI legal group). For more information, see the following web links: Survey of Mental Health Courts Google News on Mental Health Courts
Posted by szadmin at February 25, 2005 6:03 PM
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my daughter is in claxton georgia at the womens probation detention center for drug charges and aggravated assault -the assault happened during a drug enduced mania- i had supposedly a great lawyer that charged me $7500.00 and she got a year. i have had a terrible time getting her help, i have had to call everyone in the state to try and get her help. she has tried to cut her wrist 2 times since being there, they are constantly messing up her medication. she is now on like 5 different medications. they charge he account five dollars a week for seeing a nurse practictioner. a doctor from atlanta,dr,dagroote;went to see her(he was from atlanta) and he requested a counselor to see her once a week, nicole has seen her once since then. the man that runs the facility is very uncaring of this disorder, only that it is costing his facility medication and agravation. my daughter has a son now that is 13 months old and i am worried that the child will lose his mother for ever. if anyway i can be of help i will. it is sad the way everyone thinks of the bipolar diorder, also medication is so expensive and finding help that a lower class(about 20,000 to 25,000 a year salary.)with no medical insurance can afford. i hope you can do something about this even if it has no effect on my situation, maybe you can help others. thanks for just letting me speak. kim mcnear
Posted by: KIM MCNEAR at October 4, 2005 11:38 AM