Judges and Psychiatrists Leadership Initiative
About JPLI
As leaders in their respective fields, judges and psychiatrists are in a unique position to champion initiatives that address the overrepresentation of people with mental illnesses who are involved in the criminal justice system—initiatives that would ultimately enhance people’s quality of life, improve public health, increase community safety, and use public resources more effectively.
The Judges and Psychiatrists Leadership Initiative (JPLI) aims to stimulate, support, and enhance efforts by judges and psychiatrists to improve judicial, community, and systemic responses to people with behavioral health needs who are involved in the justice system by
- Creating a community of judges and psychiatrists through web-based and in-person trainings and the development and distribution of a newsletter to judges and psychiatrists;
- Increasing the reach of trainings to build the non-clinical skills of court professionals, which will help improve individual and public safety outcomes; and
- Developing educational resources to increase judges’ and psychiatrists’ understanding of the latest research and best practices for people with mental illnesses involved in the justice system.
Across the country, judges are seeing the growing impact of mental health and substance use disorders on caseloads, court operations, and community safety. Judges regularly encounter people with complex behavioral health needs, yet most are not behavioral health specialists and may not have the tools or training to navigate these challenges.
To help address this gap, JPLI developed Judicial Work at the Interface of Mental Health & Criminal Justice. This training is designed to help judges respond effectively when behavioral health issues arise in the courtroom. To date, JPLI has trained more than 5,000 judges across 32 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, and Toronto, Canada. When possible, trainings are delivered by judge-psychiatrist teams based in the participating state, pairing local judicial and clinical leaders to integrate both legal and clinical perspectives.
Sign Up for the JPLI Newsletter
The Judges and Psychiatrists Leadership Initiative is a partnership of the CSG Justice Center, the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, and the National Center for State Courts. It is funded by Janssen Charitable Contributions to create a community of judges and psychiatrists, increase the reach of trainings, and develop educational resources.
Key Staff
