Luke Myers
Argosy University
What are the services provided by mental health courts?
Mental health courts are criminal courts set up to deal with people who have mental health issues or learning disabilities who have committed crimes. Instead of putting these people in jail, mental health courts (MHC’s) look to enroll them in community treatment to deal with their mental health problems so that they will not commit crimes again. “MHC’s have been created in 34 states with a total of 7560 clients. (Redlich, 2006).” MHC’s were designed to treat people with mental health issues in jails and their families. A team approach is taken in a MHC when deciding how to treat an offender. This team usually consists of the prosecuting attorney, defense attorneys, case manager, judge, and other treatment providers. MHC’s have a goal of keeping people with mental health issues out of jail and into community mental health treatment. It is …show more content…
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