Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program
The Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program facilitates collaboration among the criminal justice, juvenile justice, and mental health and substance use treatment systems to better serve people with mental illnesses and to increase public safety.
The Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP) promotes innovative cross-system collaboration and provides grants directly to states, local governments, and federally recognized Indian tribes.
JMHCP funding requires collaboration with a mental health agency and is designed to improve responses to people with mental illnesses who are involved in the criminal justice system.
JMHCP was reauthorized by Congress in 2008 through the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA). In 2016, it was amended by the 21st Century Cures Act, which provided for JMHCP as well as mental health courts. This grant program is administered by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). As of January 2022, JMHCP has awarded more than $189.6 million in awards ranging from $100,000 to $750,000.
Since 2006, 619 JMHCP grants have been awarded to agencies and organizations in 49 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and American Samoa. Grants are used for a broad range of activities, including:
- Police-mental health collaborations and training for law enforcement officials to help them safely resolve encounters with people experiencing a mental health crisis;
- Diversion and alternative sentencing programs;
- Cross-training for criminal justice, mental health, and substance use treatment personnel;
- Enhancing access to community-based health care services and coverage;
- Community supervision and reentry services;
- Case management and other direct services;
- Mitigating threats of targeted violence; and
- Strengthening juvenile justice systems to improve outcomes for youth.
In addition to its grants, JMHCP funds a number of initiatives to support collaboration among the criminal justice, juvenile justice, mental health, and substance use treatment systems, including:
- The Center for Justice and Mental Health Partnerships: The training and support center offers free training, resources, and support to communities wanting to improve outcomes or enhance current responses for people in their criminal justice systems who have a mental illness or co-occurring substance use disorder.
- Mental Health Learning Sites: Four court-based sites were selected by the CSG Justice Center and BJA to share their expertise with other criminal justice and mental health agencies and organizations.
- JMHCP Conferences: National events to promote peer learning and collaboration among criminal justice and behavioral health practitioners, policymakers, and experts across the country.
- Law Enforcement-Mental Health Learning Sites: Fourteen programs serve as peer resources to grantees and communities across the country looking to build collaborative responses to people who have mental health needs.
The Center for Justice and Mental Health Partnerships
The Center for Justice and Mental Health Partnerships offers free training, resources, and support to communities wanting to improve outcomes or enhance current responses for people in their criminal justice systems who have a mental illness or co-occurring substance use disorder.
The training and support center is administered by the CSG Justice Center with support from BJA.
Field Notes
Field Notes is a series that elevates research-driven strategies and innovations from the field to the field to advance justice and mental health collaborations.
JMHCP News
May 11, 2022
The Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center will host a four-session…
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April 8, 2022
The Council of State Governments Justice Center applauds members of the U.S.
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April 4, 2022
After months of delays and negotiations, Congress recently approved a $1.5 trillion…
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December 20, 2021
Fifteen years after its inception, the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program…
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May 13, 2021
This virtual Community of Practice is for interdisciplinary teams seeking to implement…
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May 3, 2021
Each year, roughly two million people with serious mental illnesses are admitted…
Read MoreKey Staff
Sarah Wurzburg
Program Director, Behavioral Health
Sarah
Wurzburg
oversees
technical
assistance
focused
on
behavioral
health,
diversion,
and
reentry
and
serves
as
the
lead
for
projects
related
to
substance
use,
mental
illnesses,
and
housing.
She
leads
the
work
on
the
development
of
community
responder
programs,
including
a
...
toolkit
that
supports
sites
in
development
of
non-police
responses
to
people
in
crisis.
Previously,
Sarah
was
a
research
analyst
at
the
National
Association
of
State
Alcohol
and
Drug
Abuse
Directors,
Inc.,
where
she
was
the
team
lead
for
Youth
and
Women’s
Services
and
was
the
primary
author
of
research
reports
on
youth
substance
use
disorder
treatment,
driving
under
the
influence,
and
Medicaid.
Sarah
has
also
worked
as
a
juvenile
court
advocate
and
in
community
substance
use
disorder
prevention.
She
received
her
BA
from
DePauw
University
in
English
(writing)
and
her
MA
in
social
services
administration
with
a
focus
on
policy
analysis
from
the
University
of
Chicago.
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Demetrius Thomas
Deputy Program Director, Behavioral Health
Demetrius
Thomas oversees
training
and
technical
assistance
for
the Justice
and
Mental
Health
Collaboration
Program.
Prior
to
joining
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
he
worked
at
the
New
York
City
Department
of
Health
and
Mental
Hygiene
developing
and
managing
programs
aimed
at
reducing
...
criminal
justice
involvement
among
people
with
mental
or
behavioral
health
needs.
There,
he
led
the
agency’s
work
in
establishing
New
York
City’s
first-ever
diversion
centers
and
co-response
teams. He
has
advocated,
litigated,
and
legislated
on
a
range
of
issues
at
the
intersection
of
criminal
justice
and
public
health.
Demetrius
earned
a
BA
with
a
dual
concentration
in
international
and
U.S.
politics
from
Columbia
University
and
a
JD
from
the
University
of
the
District
of
Columbia
David
A.
Clarke
School
of
Law.
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Allison Upton
Project Manager, Behavioral Health
Allison
Upton
provides
technical
assistance
to
grantees
and
supports
policy
development
and
projects
specializing
in
the
intersection
of
criminal
justice
and
behavioral
health
issues.
Prior
to
joining
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
Allison
worked
at
the
Center
for
Alternative
Sentencing
and
...
Employment
Services
(CASES)
as
the
director
of
court
programs,
where
she
oversaw
the
court
and
community
operations
of
several
alternative-to-incarceration
(ATI)
and
detention
programs
serving
adults
with
behavioral
health
needs
in
New
York
County.
While
at
CASES,
she
developed
a
gender-specific
track
of
ATI
services
for
women
involved
in
the
justice
system
and
provided
training
on
evidence-based
practices
in
screening/assessment
in
justice
settings,
gender-responsive
recidivism
risk
assessment,
trauma-informed
case
management
practices,
and
cognitive
behavioral
group
interventions
aimed
at
minimizing
risk
of
recidivism.
Allison
previously
worked
as
a
staff
psychologist
in
inpatient
services
at
the
Manhattan
Psychiatric
Center
and
as
the
director
of
an
outpatient
program
at
the
Bronx
Children's
Psychiatric
Center.
She
received
her
BA
from
the
University
of
Miami
and
her
MS
and
PsyD
in
clinical
psychology
from
Nova
Southeastern
University.
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