Three Calhoun County entities work together to keep those needing mental health services out of jail

Northern Maine is home to some of America's poorest - but it ranks high on national measures of health. Hospital programs visit more patients in their homes where they can be more comfortable and receive everything they need, which in turn reduces medical costs.

Although the cash bail system has long been used in the US criminal justice system, many argue that it is biased based on socioeconomic levels. To reduce this bias, criminal justice researchers and data scientists have created a new risk assessment tool that uses an algorithm taking age, history of missing court and former crimes into account before making a recommendation on bail.

In 2017, New Jersey eliminated the cash bail system – meaning that potential offenders awaiting court could not be held in jail for money. Instead, judges use an algorithm that considers the individual’s criminal history, flight risk, and threat level to the community. As New York considers doing the same, it looks the impact it has made in New Jersey.

Crossroads for Women, a New Mexico nonprofit, is helping formerly incarcerated women find community, support, and recovery. Using trauma-informed care practices, the program offers a comprehensive list of services like housing, mental health treatment, employment counseling, and substance abuse treatment. Underlying all services is the understanding that no individual is trauma free and that community and relationships are crucial to sustainable recovery.

Across New Hampshire, youth are leading the fight against substance abuse. Programs like Dover’s Youth-to-Youth, Stand Up Sachems, Youth Leadership Through Adventure, and the Making it Happen Coalition, are all youth-led, adult-supported initiatives that are empowering young adults to create and disseminate substance abuse awareness and prevention campaigns. Fundamental to each of these efforts effective communication and creating a sense of community as key to prevention.

Leading up to Father’s Day, Philadelphia criminal justice organization Frontline Dads raised money to bail out fathers. Inspired by the annual Mother’s Day bailouts that happen around the country, Frontline Dad aims to not just free father’s, but raise awareness about the issue of cash bail as well. Beyond bailing out fathers, participants will also have access to services like haircuts, counseling, and job placement assistance.

Arkansas’ judicial oversight agency has the staffing and persistence to hold bad judges accountable in ways that counter a nationwide pattern of weak enforcement and judicial impunity. The Arkansas Judicial Discipline & Disability Commission has a staff that’s almost three times as large as the national per-judge average and it publicly disciplines judges more than twice the national rate. It is one of the few such agencies that will investigate anonymous complaints, frequently a barrier to starting judicial misconduct probes.

In Palm Beach County, an automated system sends text-message reminders, instead of just postal mail notices, to people with upcoming court dates. About 14% of those jailed in the county were there on warrants for failure to appear in court, placing a burden both on the system and on people's disrupted lives. Since the system was started, warrants for failure to appear are down by more than half, although other factors are also at play. At the very least, every court appearance someone makes is one less public cost and private hassle.

The Defender Association of Philadelphia practices community-oriented public defense — also known as "holistic defense" — to connect clients with support services and resources that help address the root causes of crimes. The association works with social workers, investigators, and paralegals to get clients access to housing, food, jobs, and healthcare, as well as mental health and substance use treatment, with more than 150 people referred to treatment providers between September 2016 and January 2017.

El Recovery Institute of Southwest Michigan, Inc., usa un método que se llama apoyo entre pares (emparejando personas con experiencias similares) para ayudar el proceso de recuperación. El Recovery Institute ofrece grupos, clases, reuniones individuales y reuniones sociales, y su también participan en actividades de divulgación en la comunidad. En los últimos años, el Recovery Institute ha atendido a miles de personas.