What’s happening?
The Behavioral Health Criminal Justice Coordinating Council would work to extend crisis services to incarcerated individuals to further divert them from returning to the county’s jail and justice system, said Connie Almeida, director of behavioral health services for Fort Bend County.
The task force will explore ways to provide diversion programs for those suffering mental health crises, and reintegrate individuals who are released from the county jails, Almeida said.
“It’s really important that you get everyone in the same room talking about [behavioral health],” she said. “Understanding the system from before the arrest to the release is really critical.”
The county has partnered with Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute, a nonprofit, to create the council, Almeida said.
Tim Bray, vice president for justice and health policy at the nonprofit, said the council will work to:
- Improve collaboration between stakeholders
- Address gaps in service and infrastructure
- Develop innovation solutions aimed at improving the justice system for people with behavioral health needs
- Ensure public safety while promoting policy and access to care
Bray said the council could include representatives from:
- All levels of the court system
- The sheriff’s office and/or constable’s office
- Commissioner’s court
- The district attorney’s office, including a public defender and probation officer
- Behavioral health services
- The county attorney’s office
- Texana, the county’s nonprofit partner for mental health
- The county auditor’s office
What’s next?
An exact timeline for creating the council hasn’t been established, Almeida said.
