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Mental health considerations in the criminal justice system
0:57:38
·
150 sec
Council Member Cabán emphasizes the importance of considering mental health in the criminal justice system and the potential negative impacts of incarceration on individuals managing mental health conditions.
- Cabán highlights instances where medical recommendations for individuals with mental health or substance use disorders were not followed by prosecutors or judges.
- She notes that incarceration can disrupt mental health management plans for individuals who were previously managing their conditions well.
- The discussion extends to the role of courts in problem-solving and considering the consequences of court cases on individuals, not just punishment.
- The chapter concludes with examples of successful partnerships between District Attorneys and alternative-to-incarceration programs, emphasizing a shift towards understanding that public safety doesn't equate to mass incarceration.
Tiffany Cabán
0:57:38
Thank you.
0:57:39
I yeah.
0:57:39
I mean, another a very quick example is I can't tell you how many times I had a case where we got letters from doctors saying, what would be best the best outcome for a client?
0:57:50
And, unfortunately, the the prosecutor and the judge did not follow what was better best medical practice with somebody who has a documented mental health or substance use disorder history.
0:58:01
And so, you know, it begs these questions of, like, why are these people playing doctor and allowing them to be incarcerated?
0:58:07
So something for us to think about, and then just anecdotally just understanding the spectrum and range of people struggling with mental health issues.
0:58:14
We immediately think of people with SMIs, but there are a range of people who are actually managing their mental health fairly well most of the time, and then because of the gaps in our infrastructure, into a place for a period, and in that small period, get caught up incarcerated, and it just blows their entire maintenance plan away.
Jonathan Lippman
0:58:36
The courts also have a role in this.
0:58:38
I know my successor, judge Wilson, is very into saying, we've gotta look at court cases as problem solving, not just punishment.
0:58:49
You know, what is the problem?
0:58:52
How can we be helpful in getting justice?
0:58:54
And what's the consequence for the individual person of that court case?
0:58:59
Not just how many years are they gonna get?
0:59:02
What's how do you solve the problem?
0:59:04
How do you help people?
0:59:05
And don't just look at it as numbers on a board.
0:59:07
You know?
Stanley Richards
0:59:08
And and what we've seen over the over the the years is, partnerships from some of the DAs.
0:59:13
I think in the budget hearing, almost every DAs came here and said, It is important to fund alternatives to incarceration.
0:59:20
They understand that you can't mass incarceration your way into public safety, and public safety doesn't equal mass incarceration.
0:59:28
And so we've seen over the years an alignment with district attorneys who are saying, we need to have the support of services.
0:59:35
For example, DA Bragg in Manhattan has implemented a court based navigator program.
0:59:40
He looked at our data, and he's seen people getting released, cycling through, cycling through.
0:59:45
We are now Fortune Society is now in that courtroom, doing arraignment, being available, picking up people, placing them in housing.
0:59:52
And what we've seen in the early numbers, the numbers look very successful.
0:59:56
And so we now are at a point where we're not in argument with the DAs.
1:00:04
We are lining up because the DAs understand public safety is gonna take all of us.