The Critical Window: A New Behavioral Health Framework to Address Needs After Jail Booking

Hosted by The Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center and Arnold Ventures

The decisions that court and criminal justice leaders make in the hours and days after someone with behavioral health needs is booked into jail can shape what happens to them for years—yet most counties lack a clear framework for who gets safely diverted from long sentences and who gets treatment while incarcerated.

The CSG Justice Center’s new Counties Aligning Health & Safety initiative, funded by Arnold Ventures, offers exactly that: a research-based, cross-system, hands-on framework for interventions that can be implemented during the critical window between booking and case resolution.

In this virtual event bringing together sheriffs, judges, elected officials, and county administrators from around the country, you will learn:

• How the new Counties Aligning Health & Safety initiative is addressing decision-making gaps that result in people with high behavioral health needs cycling through the justice system
• How our new framework can help you develop and implement a plan for optimizing the impact of investments in behavioral health services and diversion programs
• How your county can apply for support from national experts to pilot our new framework and evaluate the long-term impact of its changes

This event is open to anyone but intended for county leaders and local criminal justice leaders, including sheriffs and jail administrators, judges, prosecutors, public defenders, behavioral health administrators, county managers, and county commissioners.

All registrants will receive a recording and slides after the event.