Treatment Courts News Archive

Press Results

  • People With Serious Mental Illness Need Housing, Not Jail

    Vital City

    Who winds up on Rikers Island and why? What will it take to close the troubled jail complex? Those are some critical questions raised in Vital City’s special issue on New York City’s jails. In their contribution to the issue, our policy experts Daniel Ades and Virginia Barber Rioja make the case for investing in supportive housing, not jail, for people with serious mental illness—a desperately needed alternative that is cheaper, more humane, and safer for us all.

  • Gov. Hochul adds millions for mental health treatment services

    NY1

    “We don’t want to see people locked up as the solution. We want them to get the help they need, get the stability, get the path toward a healthy life.” Governor Kathy Hochul visited our Midtown Community Justice Center to share exciting news of a $33 million investment into expanded mental health support for New Yorkers in the criminal legal system. On NY1, hear from the people working on the ground to link people who have been arrested to those life-changing services, including Mel Hodor from our Midtown Community Justice Center team.

  • New York announces $33 million for mental health services. Here's how it will be used

    CBS 2 New York

    At our Midtown Community Justice Center, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced expanded investments in support for New Yorkers struggling with mental illness, including $33 million to better respond to people in the criminal legal system. The boost in funding will support more programs like ours. “I could be in jail rotting away, but I changed my life,” program graduate Ibrahim Ayu told CBS News. “I’ve really been on a trajectory of going up because of the Midtown Community Justice Center.”

  • The Future of Recovery and Reform

    A conversation with our Recovery and Reform team on their new name, the intersection of the justice system and substance use, and taking on racial disparities in treatment courts.

  • Once-Resistant Rural Court Officials Begin to Embrace Medications to Treat Addiction

    KFF

    In this article, our Director of Treatment Court Programs Monica Christofferson comments on the increasing acceptance of medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) in the drug court system. The story follows Tennessee Judge O. Duane Slone, his pilot programs with MOUD, and the successful recoveries of participants like Rachel Solomon. In short, as Christofferson put it: “MOUD works.”

  • L.A. criminal court program diverts mentally ill offenders from prosecution

    Los Angeles Times

    Los Angeles County’s jails house a staggering number of people with mental illnesses, where these conditions go untreated and can even get worse. Under the county’s Rapid Diversion Program, operated in partnership with the Center, more than 1,500 people have been given the chance to receive treatment in their communities instead. So far, 350 people have graduated from the program to see their charges reduced or dropped.

  • Brooklyn Court Rethinks Incarceration for Individuals With Mental Illnesses

    NowThis

    NowThis, the social media-focused news outlet, created a five-video series on our Brooklyn Mental Health Court, which offers community-based treatment not incarceration for individuals with serious mental health diagnoses. Watch the following videos to learn more:
    Episode 1 - D.A. Eric Gonzalez, Episode 2 - Judge Matthew D'Emic, Episode 3 - Dave Kelly and Kerry Rowe, Episode 4 - Ruth O'Sullivan, Episode 5 - Colleen King

  • Changemakers in Action: Dave Lucas

    “I’m sort of like a drug court mechanic trying to upgrade the field’s standard practices to help reduce potential harms.” Before joining the Center for Court Innovation three years ago, Dave Lucas was an addiction therapist in Toronto, Canada for nearly a decade. Dave has brought his experience working with drug court clients to the Center’s Technical Assistance team where he serves as a clinical advisor for treatment courts, working with judges, attorneys, law enforcement, and clinicians across the country to share substance use treatment best practices and foster health equity.

  • Changemakers in Action: Alejandra Garcia

    “I feel called to advocate for the dignity and health of individuals, families, and communities.” Alejandra Garcia works to build strong communities, fulfilling a lifelong goal of transforming the criminal justice system. As a senior program manager with the Center for Court Innovation’s treatment courts team, Alejandra partners with local and national justice system practitioners to improve their drug treatment courts, develop statewide plans to address substance use, and implement opioid courts.