RD203 - Community-Based Jail Diversion Programs


Executive Summary:
During the 2006 Session, the Virginia General Assembly provided the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services (DMHMRSAS) with funding to promote the diversion of persons with mental illness from unnecessary involvement with the criminal justice system. The language of that appropriation, contained in Item 311. X., was as follows:

"Out of this appropriation, $500,000 the first year and $500,000 the second year from the general fund shall be used to expand community-based programs that divert individuals with mental illness from jails or for aftercare programs for individuals with mental illness who have been released from jail. The Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services shall establish criteria, administer and evaluate the grants provided for this purpose. Beginning October 1, 2007, the Department shall report program information and outcome data annually to the Chairmen of the Senate Finance and House Appropriations Committees and the Joint Commission on Health Care."

Allocation of the funding was based upon several factors, including: consideration of the legislative basis for the development of Item 311. X.; the prior participation of the Community Services Boards (CSB) and Behavioral Health Authority (BRA) listed below in the original requests for pilot program funding made to the Joint Commission on Health Care in November of 2005; and the high level of activity that was already in place around the issue of developing jail diversion services in the CSB regions selected.

It has been the goal of DMHMRSAS to support the development and implementation of a comprehensive, jointly developed DMHMRSAS/CSB/BHA Community-Based Jail Diversion program in those areas of the state that have large local or regional jails holding a high number of inmates with mental illness. In addition to the great need in the jails of those areas for increased access to mental health treatment services for inmates with mental illness, the jails in these areas present a high demand for DMHMRSAS hospital beds.

It has been the plan of the Department that the diversion programs developed would focus upon implementing a "post-booking" form of jail diversion, targeted toward criminal defendents with mental illness who had been incarcerated on minor, nonviolent misdeameanor charges, and who otherwise posed minimal public safety risk.

Implementation of this program has also been directed at decreasing the demand for scarce jail and state hospital resources in the designated areas, while providing access to crucial mental healt care for an otherwise underserved population of disabled persons.

An additional goal of this program has been to facilitate care coordination among the CSBs, the local and regional jails involved, and state hospital forensic programs, in a manner that would allow each entity to fulfill its mission expeditiously, and that would promote safe community reentry for program clientele.