Grants to Establish and Expand Jail Diversion

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The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2018 Law Enforcement and Behavioral Health Partnerships for Early Diversion grants. The purpose of this program is to establish or expand programs that divert adults with a serious mental illness (SMI) or a co-occurring disorder (COD) from the criminal justice system to community-based services prior to arrest and booking. Special consideration will be given to applicants proposing to use grant funding to support early diversion services for veterans. Data indicate that a significant number of individuals that come in contact with law enforcement and the criminal justice system have a mental disorder. The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, reported that 1 in 7 state and federal prisoners (14 percent) and 1 in 4 jail inmates (26 percent) reported experiences that met the threshold for serious psychological distress. Approximately one-quarter of a million individuals with serious mental illnesses are incarcerated at any given moment – about half are arrested for non-violent offenses, such as trespassing or disorderly conduct. Approximately one quarter of a million individuals with serious mental illnesses are incarcerated at any given moment—about half arrested for non-violent offenses, such as trespassing or disorderly conduct . Effective diversion programs begins with establishing collaborative partnerships between law enforcement and community providers. Establishing clearly defined and sustainable partnerships is the first of four core strategies in the International Association of Chiefs of Police’ One Mind Campaign (http://www.theiacp. org/onemindcampaign) and the first element of the Crisis Intervention Team’s ten core elements http://cit.memphis.edu/pdf/.

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