Mental Health Court debuts
Anisha Madappa
Issue date: 7/17/09 Section: News
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The court opened July 8 and has picked out a pilot group of 15 inmates.
Like other problem-solving courts, Philadelphia's Mental Health Court will be used to help incarcerated individuals get help so that when they are done with their prison term, they will be able to become part of society and not be convicted of another crime. According to McCaffery, an estimated 30 percent of prisoners in Philadelphia are there because of mental illness, and jail is not the proper place for them.
"We can't keep putting people in jail. … This will save us money, and this as a society is the best thing to do to help people that need it," McCaffery said.
To be a part of the program, individuals must adhere to certain requirements. They must be a Philadelphia county resident, qualify for Medicaid, have five or less incarcerations, not be convicted of a violent or sexual offense and have a mental illness that is seen in the eyes of the court. These illnesses are typically schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major depression. Once eligible, individuals must a sign a document that mandates them to agree to constant court supervision and court appearances so that the court can maintain the status of their case.
Some of the perks of the program are intensive mental treatment, medical assistance, a social worker who will deal with their case and out-of-prison housing. Housing is individualized depending on the person and their mental illness. Example types of housing are recovery houses, structured supervised housing, or, if one is very successful in the program, living independently with regular court checks.
Although letting mentally ill convicts come back into society before their prison term is up may seem dubious to some, Drexel's Chair of Psychology, Kirk Heilbrun, isn't worried.
"Most individuals with a severe mental illness who are incarcerated for a short time in a jail, or serve a sentence in prison, will eventually return to the community," Heilbrun stated. "Mental health court is another approach to providing needed services in the community, under court supervision, rather than incarcerating individuals whose re-offense risk drops if they receive needed mental health services."
This program may seem expensive but much of the costs of the program are being covered by a grant received by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency as well as Medicaid.
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