mentaL iLLness: from eXorcisms to mentaL heaLth court
Diversity Committee
Continued from page 30
where they were sometimes kept in
windowless dungeons, beaten, and
chained to their beds. 6
Ultimately, greater understanding
of mental disorders, and medications
as potential treatments, helped
spur deinstitutionalization, allowing
mentally ill individuals to be released
back into the general public. Because
the mentally ill were not given
proper resources, however, their rate
of homelessness and incarceration
increased substantially.
The recent establishment of
mental health courts is helping to
stem the influx of the mentally ill
into prisons and dispel the associated
stigma. Monitoring and treating
offenders with serious mental illness
in a mental health court can be
more effective and efficient, and
less expensive, than the remedies
available through traditional justice
system approaches. 7 Mental health
courts generally share the following
goals: to improve public safety
by reducing criminal recidivism;
to improve the quality of life of
people with mental illnesses and
to increase their participation in
effective treatment; and to reduce
court- and corrections-related costs
through administrative efficiencies,
often by providing an alternative
to incarceration. 8
The Mental Health Court
(Division M) in Hillsborough County
handles defendants charged with
third-degree felonies who have been
deemed incompetent to proceed;
those found not guilty by reason
of insanity; and defendants who
participate in the mental health
pre-trial intervention program.
Targeting mental health treatment
and follow-up, Division M links
defendants to treatment and other
services within the community. Case
M AY - J U N E 2 0 1 8
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HCBA LAWYER
managers perform status checks,
monitor treatment compliance and
help defendants navigate the process
to secure funding for treatment.
Chief Judge Ronald Ficarrotta
heads Division M. He applauds the
hard work and dedication of mem -
bers of the State Attorney’s Office;
the Office of Julianne Holt, the
Public Defender; and mental health
professionals who work to make
Division M successful, and hopes to
expand the program in the future.
WebMD, Mental Illness Basics,
available at https://www.webmd.com/
mental-health/default.htm.
2 UPMC HealthBeat, Infographic:
5 Types of Mental Illness, available
at https://share.upc.com/2015/11/
infographic-5-types-of-mental-illness.
3 Id.; see also https://www.nimh.
nih.gov/health/publications/about-
nimh-new/index.shtml.
1
Inquiries Journal, The History of
Mental Illness: From Skull Drills to Happy
Pills, Allison M. Foerschner, 2010, Vol 2
No. 09.
5 Lumen Introduction to Psychology,
Mental Health Treatment: Past and Present,
available at https://courses.lumenlearning.
com/waymaker-psychology/chapter/
mental-health-treatment-past-and-present.
6 Id.
7 Florida Courts, Mental Health Court,
available at http://www.flcourts.org/
resources-and-services/court-
improvement/problem-solving-
courts.mental-
health-courts.stml.
8 Id.
4
Author:
Antina Mobley –
Public Defender’s
Office, Thirteenth
Judicial Circuit
HCBA Members Attend Lightning Game
several hcBa members enjoyed a night of fun and camaraderie, as they cheered on
the tampa Bay Lightning at their home game against the Boston Bruins on march 17 (and
coincidentally st. patrick’s Day). thank you to the members that joined us!
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