JMHCP Grantee (2010) -- Albuquerque Mental Health Court

Quick Facts:

Date accepted first participant:
January/2003
Mental health docket frequency:
Twice weekly
Number of participants per year:
101-200
Clinical eligibility criteria:
  • The court accepts participants with any Axis I or Axis II mental health diagnoses
    • Clinical exclusion criteria:
    • Primary substance use disorders
    Legal eligibility criteria:
  • Ordinance offenses / violations
  • Misdemeanors
  • Misdemeanor probation violations
    • Case disposition upon successful program completion:
  • Participants' charges may be dismissed upon successful completion
  • Participants' charges may be reduced upon successful completion
  • Participants' time under supervision may be reduced
    • Case disposition upon unsuccessful program completion:
  • Participants are returned to the court of original jurisdiction for case processing
  • Participants are returned to the court of original jurisdiction for sentencing
    • Court and service components funded by:
  • Federal funds
  • State funds

    • JMHCP Grantee Information

    Grant Year
    2010

    JMHCP Grantee (2010) -- Albuquerque Mental Health Court

    Contact:

    Name:
    Davd J. Martine
    Title:
    Probation Officer II
    Address:
    401 Lomas NW
    Albuquerque, NM 87102
    Email:
    djmartinez@metrocourt.state.nm.us
    Phone:
    505-841-8240

    JMHCP Grantee (2010) -- Albuquerque Mental Health Court

    General: Jurisdiction, History, and Planning

    Grantee Year:
    Urban
    Other collaborative criminal justice/mental health initiatives in community:
    Albq, Police: Crisis Intervention Team (CIT)
    Bernalillo County Detention Center
    Forensic Intervention Consortium
    Date accepted first participant:
    January/2003
    Mental health docket frequency:
    Twice weekly
    Number of participants per year:
    101-200
    Planning and oversight/advisory group:
  • The court had a planning committee that has evolved into an oversight/advisory capacity
    • Oversight group members:
  • Pretrial services staff
  • Judicial officer (e.g. a judge or magistrate)
  • Court administrator / program director
  • Prosecutor
  • Public defender

    • Eligibility Criteria

    Clinical eligibility criteria:
  • The court accepts participants with any Axis I or Axis II mental health diagnoses
    • Clinical exclusion criteria:
    • Primary substance use disorders
    Establishment of clinical eligibility criteria:
  • They were established through the court's experience and expertise
    • Legal eligibility criteria:
  • Ordinance offenses / violations
  • Misdemeanors
  • Misdemeanor probation violations
    • Effect of criminal history on eligibility:
  • Yes, individuals with past violent crimes are excluded from participation
  • Yes, individuals with past sex offenses are excluded from participation
  • Yes, individuals with past arson offenses are excluded from participation
    • Degree to which crime victims are involved in court processes:
    Victims are notified when individuals enter the court program
    Reasons for lack of victim involvement in court processes:
  • The court's rules regarding participant confidentiality limit victims' rights to notification and participation in the court program

    • Court Team and Training

    Personnel who participate in case staffings:
  • Court administrator / program director
  • Defense attorney
  • Treatment provider or case manager employed by community mental health service provider
  • Community supervision officer (probation or parole)
    • Job orientation:
    Staff receive peer-to-peer training
    Ongoing training:
  • Yes, there is funding support for staff to attend training sessions.
    • Training topics:
    • Overview of mental illness (e.g. recognizing symptoms or medications)
    • Integrated mental health and substance abuse treatment
    • Diversion options
    • Treatment engagement
    • Cultural competence
    • Gender-specific treatment and services
    • Trauma issues
    • Substance abuse treatment

    Participant Information

    Primary sources of referrals:
    • Law enforcement
    • Mental health / substance abuse treatment providers
    • Family/friends of the defendant
    • Defendants themselves (self-referral)
    • Jail staff
    • Probation officers
    • Judges
    • Drug court programs
    • Pretrial services staff
    • Prosecutors
    • Defense attorneys
    Mental health screening conducted by:
  • Court personnel with mental health background / experience
  • Court personnel with a criminal justice background / experience
    • Mental health assessment conducted by:
  • Staff of mental health court
    • Point at which full mental health assessment conducted:
    Before eligibility is determined

    Terms and Duration of Participation

    Legal mechanism by which participants are accepted into court program:
    • Participants' charges are held in abeyance and then dismissed upon successful program completion
    • Varies depending on charge
    Case disposition upon successful program completion:
  • Participants' charges may be dismissed upon successful completion
  • Participants' charges may be reduced upon successful completion
  • Participants' time under supervision may be reduced
    • Case disposition upon unsuccessful program completion:
  • Participants are returned to the court of original jurisdiction for case processing
  • Participants are returned to the court of original jurisdiction for sentencing
    • Terms of participation:
    They are individualized based on the offense
    The court uses a formal, standard written contract for all participants:
    Yes
    Minimum and maximum periods of participation:
    • minimum 3 months max. one year
    Average length of participation:
    0.5 years to 1 year

    Confidentiality and Informed Choice

    The court obtains written consent to release personal information:
    Yes, participants sign an initial release upon joining the program and subsequent releases when additional information is requested or shared
    Court-supervised treatment becomes part of the participants' criminal record:
    No
    The court has standard protocols for establishing legal competence of potential participants:
    Yes, the court program has a system for establishing legal competence aside from the state system
    Length of time to assess participants' legal competence
    One month
    After assessment of legal competence, length of time before assessment of clincial competence:
    The court program does not assess clinical competence
    Defense counsel helps potential participants decide whether to enter the court:
    Yes

    Monitoring, Supervision, Treatment, and Adherence

    Monitoring and supervision of participants primarily performed by:
    Court team members mental health background
    Services available to court participants:
    • Emergency psychiatric services (crisis stabilization)
    • Victim-defendant mediation
    • Assistance in locating housing
    • Assistance in financing housing
    • Assistance in accessing benefits (e.g. Medicaid, SSI, SSDI, veterans)
    • Transportation (e.g. bus fare, rides to program-related appointments)
    • Supported employment
    • Inpatient mental health treatment
    • Outpatient mental health treatment
    • Substance abuse treatment (independent from mental health treatment)
    • Integrated substance abuse and mental health treatment
    • Medication management
    • Individual psychotherapy
    • Group psychotherapy
    • Family therapy
    Court-supported services available after program completion:
    Some
    Rewards and incentives applied to participants who adhere to terms of treatment plans:
  • Early completion of participation in court program
  • Priority position in the order of cases called
  • Praise from the judge
  • Increased time between status hearings
    • Sanctions applied to participants who do not adhere to terms of treatment plans:
  • Restriction of finances (e.g. appointment of a representative payee)
  • Jail
  • Expulsion from the program
  • Modifications in treatment plan (e.g. more frequent appointments with a case manager, adjustment to medications, increased drug screening, etc.)
  • Judicial reprimands
  • Journal assignments
  • Increased frequency of status hearings
  • Increased supervision intensity (e.g. meetings with a probation officer or case manager, drug testing, visits to court on a normal docket day)
  • Restriction of privileges (e.g. curfew, travel)

    • Sustainability

    Court and service components funded by:
  • Federal funds
  • State funds
    • Has the court received media coverage?
    Yes
    Is there published research on the court program?
    No
    About this information:

    A program representative provided this information details through a detailed survey.

    For more information on the survey, read about our methodology or download a pdf of the full survey.

    If you are a representative of a similar program not yet listed in our database, please register and take the survey to contribute your information.

    Explore the Justice Center’s Websites
    CSG Justice Center Criminal Justice / Mental Health Consensus Project Justice Reinvestment National Reentry Resource Center Reentry Policy Council