Mental Health Court/Initiative


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Read the Bexar County Commissioners Court
2013 DIRECTORY OF MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES


In December 2008 the Bexar County Commissioner’s Court authorized the formation of the Mental Health Court/Initiative in the Department of Community Resources. The targeted population is non-violent, mentally ill inmates who have had more than one incarceration in the last 12 months and mentally ill inmates who cannot participate in their own defense. The division’s goals are to identify mental illness early in the judicial process, ensure that these inmates are linked with services before leaving the Adult Detention Center, provide case management for one year in order to reduce recidivism and to support the development of Competency Restoration in Bexar County.

The initiative will focus on four areas:

  • Early Identification
  • Linkage to treatment and services
  • Case management
  • Reduce the likelihood that inmates will commit crime again, returning to incarceration

The end result will be targeted to decrease the criminalization of mentally ill individuals.