Our society is awakening to the reality that too many people in the criminal justice system are there at least in part due to issues of mental health.
At the Statehouse, a number of bills are being advanced that would extend resources and services to address mental health needs. Gov. Eric Holcomb, Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and key legislative leaders have made this a priority in the 2023 session of the Indiana General Assembly. There is broad bipartisan support for these efforts because in one way or another, we are all touched by issues related to mental health.
Locally, Republic reporter Mark Webber last week wrote of another initiative along these lines. Bartholomew Superior 1 Judge James Worton has taken the first steps toward establishing a Mental Health Problem Solving Court. This proposal makes sense. It would optimize judicial resources and get people the help they need rather than simply throwing them into the criminal justice system.
Worton proposes this court from his role in overseeing all local mental health commitment cases, so he better than anyone understands the need for a specialized docket like this. As Webber wrote, if the proposal is approved by the Indiana Office of Court Services, Chief Probation Officer Brad Barnes would be the program coordinator, and the court could be operational by July.
“We need more tools to increase the safety of our citizens and to ensure that mentally ill defendants are receiving the level of accountability, treatment and supervision that they require, so that they can live their lives outside of the justice system,” Worton said.
Problem-solving courts have their limitations, but as their name implies, they aim to address the underlying issues that led someone to offend. These focused dockets typically are restricted to lower-level, nonviolent offenders who agree to participate in exchange for diversion of their charges from the criminal justice system.
Already, Bartholomew County has a Veterans Treatment Court overseen by Worton, a Drug Recovery Court administered by Bartholomew Circuit Judge Kelly Benjamin, and a Family Recovery Court where Juvenile Magistrate Brittney Newland presides.
These courts require a commitment of resources from the courts and the community, mostly in the form of time and ensuring accountability. The courts also require a commitment from the program participant to abide by what can be a growing and life-changing process.
There is no doubt of the need for a specialized mental health docket. The National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) says 44% of people incarcerated in local jails have a history of mental illness.
As Debbie Teike, a leader with the South Central Indiana chapter of NAMI told Webber, when someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, the public is frequently instructed to call 911, which may result in the person in crisis ending up in local jails, which are not equipped to provide treatment.
There is a better way to deal with situations such as this, and Judge Worton has identified it. We applaud him, Barnes and other stakeholders who are committing to a program that can make a real difference to people who need help.
