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JMHCP Grantee (2010) -- Santa Clara County Juvenile Delinquency Mental Health Court - Court for the Individualized Treatment of Adolescents (CITA)
Quick Facts:
- Date accepted first participant:
- 02/01/01
- Mental health docket frequency:
- Twice monthly
- Number of participants per year:
- 51-100
- Clinical eligibility criteria:
- The court accepts participants with Axis I diagnoses if the diagnoses correspond to state criteria for “serious and / or persistent mental illness”
- Clinical exclusion criteria:
- Primary substance use disorders
- Legal eligibility criteria:
-
- Misdemeanors
- Misdemeanor probation violations
- Felonies (nonviolent)
- Case disposition upon successful program completion:
- Participants' charges may be dismissed upon successful completion
- Case disposition upon unsuccessful program completion:
- Participants are returned to the court of original jurisdiction for sentencing
- Participants' cases are processed by the mental health court for charges that were held in abeyance
- Court and service components funded by:
-
- State funds
- State mental health funds
JMHCP Grantee Information
- Grant Year
- 2010
JMHCP Grantee (2010) -- Santa Clara County Juvenile Delinquency Mental Health Court - Court for the Individualized Treatment of Adolescents (CITA)
Contact:
- Name:
- Mara Jochums
- Organization:
- Santa Clara County Juvenile Delinquency Mental Health Court - Court for the Individualized Treatment of Adolescents (CITA)
- Address:
- 840 Guadalupe Parkway
San Jose, CA 95110 - Email:
- mjochums@scscourt.org
- Phone:
- 408.278.6021
JMHCP Grantee (2010) -- Santa Clara County Juvenile Delinquency Mental Health Court - Court for the Individualized Treatment of Adolescents (CITA)
General: Jurisdiction, History, and Planning
- Grantee Year:
- Urban
- Other collaborative criminal justice/mental health initiatives in community:
-
MIOCRE Grant
- Date accepted first participant:
- 02/01/01
- Mental health docket frequency:
- Twice monthly
- Number of participants per year:
- 51-100
- Planning and oversight/advisory group:
- The court currently has an oversight/advisory committee with substantially different membership than its planning committee
- Oversight group members:
-
- Line-level law enforcement official
- Community mental health service provider
- Supervisory-level law enforcement official
- Judicial officer (e.g. a judge or magistrate)
- Prosecutor
- Public defender
Eligibility Criteria
- Clinical eligibility criteria:
- The court accepts participants with Axis I diagnoses if the diagnoses correspond to state criteria for “serious and / or persistent mental illness”
- Clinical exclusion criteria:
- Primary substance use disorders
- Establishment of clinical eligibility criteria:
- They were established in consultation with mental health treatment providers
- Legal eligibility criteria:
-
- Misdemeanors
- Misdemeanor probation violations
- Felonies (nonviolent)
- Effect of criminal history on eligibility:
- Degree to which crime victims are involved in court processes:
- Victims are notified about a range of court events (e.g. admission, court proceedings, case disposition, etc.)
- Reasons for lack of victim involvement in court processes:
Court Team and Training
- Personnel who participate in case staffings:
-
- Prosecutor
- Defense attorney
- Treatment provider or case manager employed by the court
- Community supervision officer (probation or parole)
- Job orientation:
- Staff are oriented on-the-job
- Ongoing training:
- Training topics:
-
- Overview of mental illness (e.g. recognizing symptoms or medications)
- Local mental health services and community treatment capacity
Participant Information
- Primary sources of referrals:
- Mental health / substance abuse treatment providers
- Probation officers
- Prosecutors
- Defense attorneys
- Mental health screening conducted by:
- 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 are sentenced to participation after a finding of guilt
- Case disposition upon successful program completion:
- Participants' charges may be dismissed upon successful completion
- Case disposition upon unsuccessful program completion:
- Participants are returned to the court of original jurisdiction for sentencing
- Participants' cases are processed by the mental health court for charges that were held in abeyance
- Terms of participation:
- They are standard with individualized terms routinely added
- The court uses a formal, standard written contract for all participants:
- Yes
- Minimum and maximum periods of participation:
- No, there are no minimum or maximum periods of participation
- 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 a single release
- 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
- Varies
- After assessment of legal competence, length of time before assessment of clincial competence:
- Varies
- 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 criminal justice background
- Services available to court participants:
- Emergency psychiatric services (crisis stabilization)
- Victim-defendant mediation
- Assistance in locating housing
- Assistance in accessing benefits (e.g. Medicaid, SSI, SSDI, veterans)
- 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:
- Yes
- Rewards and incentives applied to participants who adhere to terms of treatment plans:
-
- Graduation ceremonies
- Early completion of participation in court program
- Praise from the judge
- Increased time between status hearings
- Sanctions applied to participants who do not adhere to terms of treatment plans:
- Fines / fees
- 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.)
- The court does not have a standardized list of sanctions.
- Judicial reprimands
- 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)
- Home visits
- Restriction of privileges (e.g. curfew, travel)
- Community service
Sustainability
- Court and service components funded by:
-
- State funds
- State mental health funds
- Has the court received media coverage?
- Yes
- Is there published research on the court program?
- Unknown
About this information:
A program representative provided this information details through a detailed survey.
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