Press Room
The Consensus Project is coordinated by:
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| PROGRAM TITLE: |
Orleans District Mental Health Court |
| AGENCY/ORGANIZATION: |
Orleans Parish District Court, Court Intervention Services |
| STATE: |
Louisiana |
| YEAR ESTABLISHED: |
2003 |
| LEVEL OF JURISDICTION: |
State |
| ISSUE AREA: |
Courts: Adjudication and Sentencing |
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Program Overview
In October 2003, the Orleans Criminal District Court received funding through the Bureau of Justice Administration to form a Mental Health Court. Under the guidance of Judge Calvin Johnson, the Mental Health Court held its first session on December 1, 2003, to provide assistance to offenders suffering from dual diagnosis issues. The need for special initiatives to address individuals with drug and mental health diagnosis had become evident for some time. The Court will build on the existing collaborative infrastructure of judges, administrators, court intervention services and the committed partnerships of community agencies that support Drug Court and Domestic Violence Monitoring Court.
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Recent Updates
The court received technical assistance from Dr. Henry Steadman and his colleagues at Policy Research Associates,Inc. on the subject of data collection and outcome evaluations. Dr. Steadman, Michelle Naples and Allison Redlich visited the court on July 15 ,2004, to meet with representatives of collaborating agencies to discuss these topics.
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Recent Dialogue
Question for
Peter Brandt
Contact Person
I am conducting some research into the caseload size for the MHC Probation Officers for the King County District Court Mental Health Court. Relying on the contact information in the NAMI/ TAPA/ Consensus Survey of Mental Health Courts, I found your email and am posing the following questions:
1. Do you use probation officers to monitor/ supervise the court orders initiated in the MHC? 2. How many probation officers serve in your program? 3. How large is the PO caseload? 4. What is the typical length of jurisdic-tion in your MHC? 5. Do you serve felony (F) as well as misdemeanor (MD) offenders? 6. Can you provide a guestimate (absent a real estimate) of the proportion of F/ MD cases that you service? Thanks.
- Lois Smith
02/22/06 08:14 AM EST
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Program Description
The Court formed an Advisory Committee of representatives from the Louisiana Office of Mental Health, the Office of Addictive Disorders, the Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities, and Mental Health Patient Advocacy groups to discuss policy and procedures for the operation of the Mental Health Court. The Court also entered into cooperative agreements with the District Attorneys Office, the Indigent Defenders Office, the New Orleans Police Department Crisis Intervention Unit, the Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff and Louisiana Rehabilitation Services as well as community providers of social services, including Family Service of Greater New Orleans, Volunteers of America, YWCA, Bridge House, Responsibility House, Brotherhood, Inc. and Xavier University of Louisiana. The project went through a thorough planning process led by the Mental Health Court Judge and the Advisory Committee to complete the coordinated efforts required to address the needs of this vital initiative.
The ultimate goal of this program is to improve the functioning of these individuals by intensive case management of the key elements of stability. These elements include treatment, housing, employment and other social services thereby reducing or eliminating further contact with the criminal justice system. The Case Management Team consists of the judge, case manager, counselor, indigent or private attorney and prosecutor. This team will serve as the monitor and vehicle of compliance and enforcement.
The Mental Health Court, furthermore, represents a continued collaboration and incremental building on a recent history of innovative approaches and sentencing options in the Orleans Criminal District Court. These specialty courts are aimed at enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the justice system by addressing the underlying problems of their offending clients. With a coordinated effort of the Case Management Team and the various partnerships, the offenders will receive enhanced access to treatment and are more likely to succeed in becoming healthy, productive citizens.
Outcome Data
The court has collected data during the first six months of operation with the thought of conducting an outcome evaluation at the end of the first year. The collaborating partners have met on a regular basis to review the criteria for data collection and to determine which one of the partners will be able to furnish the data more readily than the others. The results of the outcome evaluation will be given to local, state and federal funding agencies with the hope of sustainability for the program at the xpiration of the grantt.
Challenges / Areas for Improvement Identified
The capacity of the court is only 100 clients because of the limited amount of funding supplied by the grant. The court is trying to obtain additional resouces to allow the capacity to be increased. Housing is also an issue that the court must confront on a continuing basis. It is extremely difficult for this population to find available housing.
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Staff from the Consensus Project, GAINS EBP Center, and GAINS TAPA Center have not conducted an empirical evaluation of any of the profiles provided in the directory. Accordingly, the Consensus Project, GAINS EBP, and GAINS TAPA do not promote any of these programs as "models" or "best practices." Nor does the directory reflect an inventory of all relevant efforts underway across the country. Administrators of the programs included in the directory are largely responsible for maintaining information about their initiative current. Accordingly, staff cannot guarantee that the information in the directory is completely current.
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