On July 15-17, 2009, the Council of State Governments Justice Center, in partnership with the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), hosted a technical assistance and training event for nearly 500 representatives from state and local governments and community-based programs who have expressed interest in improving how the justice system responds to adults and juveniles with mental illnesses.

This was the largest training forum ever organized by BJA on this topic. Participation in the event was limited primarily to representatives from jurisdictions that received grants through BJA's Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP), as well as jurisdictions that applied for but did not receive funding from JMHCP. Several other collaborative criminal justice/mental health teams were also in attendance.