Jail Diversion Programs for Mentally Ill Offenders

Programs that divert individuals with serious mental illness (and often co-occurring substance abuse disorders) in contact with the justice system from jail and provide linkages to community-based treatment and support services. Included are diversion programs that occur at the point of contact with law enforcement before formal charges have been filed, and programs that divert offenders with mental illness after they have been charged and are awaiting trial. Most programs are characterized by special training for police officers and the availability of a twenty-four hour crisis drop-off centre with a no refusal policy that is available to receive persons brought in by the police. The objectives of the programs are to reduce the amount of time these individuals spend in jail and/or lockups on the current charge and to ensure that they are linked with an appropriate array of community-based treatment and support services.