Mental Health Court

The Mental Health Court program is a voluntary program for offenders who are mentally ill and need assistance to be successful in maintaining compliance with treatment. The Wayne County Common Pleas Court recognizes that with proper care, support, and treatment, individuals with mental illness can recover and lead meaningful and productive lives.

The primary mission of the Mental Health Court is to:

  1. Preserve community safety
  2. Reduce the need for incarceration of persons with mental illness
  3. Lower recidivism
  4. Work in Collaboration with the mental health system to meet the special needs of these individuals

Offenders are first referred to the Mental Health Court Coordinator and a mental health assessment is arranged. To be considered for inclusion in the program, participants must be diagnosed with a mental illness such as schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder or major depression. The participant must also agree to comply with court supervision and treatment. Once accepted, participants are required to attend bi-weekly Mental Health Court sessions to update the Judge and other staff involved as to the participants’ progress in treatment. Participants may be required to attend counseling, obtain psychiatric services, comply with medication regimes, receive employment assistance, or other individualized services. The participant is supervised on Community Control by a probation officer with specialized training in the area of mental health. Additionally, the offender will also be assigned a case manager from the Counseling Center of Wayne and Holmes Counties to assist with daily needs.

The Mental Health Court has been recognized by the Supreme Court of Ohio and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) as the second in the State of Ohio at the Common Pleas/Felony Level. In addition, the Wayne County Adult Probation Department was instrumental in the implementation of the Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) for local law enforcement.

The Wayne County Common Pleas Court constantly evaluates trends and shifts in adjudicated populations and develops specialized programming to best meet these trends. One methods of responding to these trends is through the development and administration of the following specialized program: