UPDATED: Board Backs Resolution Urging Reduction in Mentally Ill Patients Behind Bars

By City News Service:

RIVERSIDE, CA - The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to establish an umbrella program intended to help mentally ill offenders get counseling and stay out of the Riverside County jail system.

In a 5-0 vote without comment, the board adopted the "Stepping Up Initiative," which will be used as a framework for policy changes that promote treatment over incarceration for individuals with diagnosed disorders. Riverside County is the 18th California county to adopt the concept.

Executive Office staff noted in documents posted to the policy agenda that Assembly Bill 109 -- the Public Safety Realignment Act of 2011 -- and Proposition 47 have both created quandaries that necessitate rethinking the application of justice.

AB 109 shifted a number of correctional responsibilities from the state to counties, putting a squeeze on jail space, while Prop. 47 downgraded drug, theft and fraud offenses so that offenders who at one time might have gone to state prison are now eligible for probation and low-term county jail sentences.

According to the Stepping Up Initiative, mentally ill criminal offenders are six times more likely to re-offend than the average convict.

"Without the appropriate treatment and services, people with mental illnesses continue to cycle through the criminal justice system, often resulting in tragic outcomes for these individuals and their families," the initiative states.

County staff pointed out that alcohol or drugs is routinely an aggravating factor in crimes committed by mentally ill individuals, so creating protocols that emphasize substance abuse treatment should be a priority.

Bexar County, Texas' Restoration Center was specifically cited as an example of a successful diversion program.

The Stepping Up Initiative's "Call to Action" encourages the formation of public-private partnerships for the development of programs that utilize "research-based approaches" to treat those who might otherwise fall through the cracks.

No funding requirements were identified.

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