Mental Health Issues in Criminal Court: Collaboration among Broward County, Florida Courts, and Nova Southeastern University

Abstract

In June 1997 the Broward County Courts in Fort Lauderdale, Florida began an experimental new specialty court to handle mentally ill defendants who are arrested on suspicion of committing non-violent misdemeanor (lower level) crimes. Prompted by several high publicity cases where defendants spent long periods of time incarcerated in jail awaiting hearings on their charges, the Chief Judge accepted the findings of the Broward County Public Defender’s Office, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, the State Attorney’s office, the mental health community, and other concerned community leaders and formed the first Mental Health Court in the nation to deal with criminal matters. Determining that it would better serve the community interests to rehabilitate by mental health treatment rather than punish through incarceration these chronically mentally ill persons, a judge with considerable mental health training was assigned to the court along with representatives from the local mental health community.