NCJ Number
204328
Date Published
December 2002
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This is a report to the Texas Legislature on juveniles with mental health and substance abuse disorders involved in the juvenile justice system.
Abstract
A fiscal year 2001 report by the Criminal Justice Policy Council indicates that juveniles with mental health disorders comprise a significant percentage of offenders in the juvenile justice system. In addition, other State agencies dealing with youth with substance abuse disorders are frequently involved in the juvenile justice system. To address these problems, the 77th Texas Legislature enacted HB 1901, which called for the Texas Council on Offenders with Mental Impairments (TCOMI’s) to conduct a study on this policy issue. TCOMI, along with the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission (TJPC), the Texas Youth Commission (TYC), and the Texas Department of Mental Health/Mental Retardation (TDMH/MR) conducted four community hearings in calendar year 2002 to solicit input from the general public on HB 1901 issues. Participants in the hearings included family members, local elected officials, advocacy organizations, public and private mental health or substance abuse service providers, and education officials. The majority of the testimony was on the need for increased funding for treatment services and preventative remedies designed to keep children from entering the juvenile justice system. The report provides a summary of the primary issues and recommendations that came from the testimony. Some of these issues include: 1) family support services are inadequate in scope and, if available, are inflexible; 2) zero tolerance policies may unintentionally impact youth with mental health disorders; 3) many times children of color may be labeled as delinquent when the primary issue is an undiagnosed mental health disorder; 4) despite current statutory provisions that create mechanisms for collaboration among juvenile agencies, there continues to exist a significant level of gaps in communication and coordination; and 5) the lack of qualified professionals is an on-going problem with treatment providers. As a result of the testimony, the legislature approved a mental health/criminal justice initiative for juvenile offenders and adults with mental illness. The report discusses some of the issues raised during the public hearings that are being addressed by the initiative. In addition, the report presents several issues that have emerged that will require continued monitoring. The report concludes that developing a comprehensive plan for juveniles with mental health and substance abuse disorders will require a long-term commitment of resources devoted to early childhood intervention programs, family support and training initiatives, improved collaboration among local and State public and private service providers and educational systems, and improved activities towards identifying children at risk.