Collaborative or specialized courts offer diversion programs that allow defendants to avoid incarceration. They can be highly beneficial to those struggling with mental health or other issues. They also help with the issue of prison overcrowding by allowing more people to remain in the community while getting needed treatment.
Under California law, judges could assign defendants to a diversion program for certain crimes if their “mental disorder was a significant factor in the commission of the charged offense” as long as the defendant would “not pose an unreasonable risk of danger to public safety.”
What changes under the new law?
This year, California state lawmakers modified that. They overwhelmingly passed legislation that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law effective at the end of June. It gives judges broader discretion in denying defendants’ requests to participate in a mental health treatment program in lieu of incarceration.
Under the new law, judges are required to consider whether not incarcerating someone would “endanger public safety.” They must determine that a defendant “will not pose a substantial and undue risk” to anyone else’s safety if they receive treatment without being incarcerated.
This may seem like a subtle difference. However, those who supported the change, including law enforcement organizations, asserted that too many people who were placed in diversion programs ended up being charged with other, more serious offenses. They and lawmakers who supported the legislation claimed that judges were sometimes “forced” to put people in diversion programs when they weren’t comfortable doing so.
Those opposed to the new law argued that it actually takes away discretion and flexibility from judges and will likely prevent many eligible people from being able to benefit from these mental health treatment programs.
The new law makes it more critical than ever that those who can benefit more from mental health diversion than incarceration make a strong case based on the current law. Getting experienced legal guidance is an important first step in this regard.
