CIT Expansion in the Commonwealth of

Virginia

Victoria Cochran, Tim Paul, Patrick Halpern & Joseph Yost

1st International CIT ConferenceSan Antonio, TX

June 2, 2010

CIT Expansion in Virginia

Criminal Justice and Behavioral Health in Virginia

Historical Context of CIT in Virginia CIT Legislation and Codification VA CIT Coalition Essential Elements for New Program

Development Practical Implementation of Statewide

Expansion Lessons Learned

Criminal Justice and Mental Health Transformation Context

An Overview of Virginia’s CJ/BH Systems

7.7M total population 134 distinct city and county jurisdictions 39,000 square miles 40 Community Services Boards 16 MH/ID facilities 67 local and regional jails

Civil Custody in Virginia

Emergency Custody Orders Criteria Length Paperless Execution

Historical Context of CIT in Virginia

New River Valley Crisis Intervention Team First rural, multi-jurisdictional adaptation

of Memphis Model CIT Initial Statewide Expansion Efforts

FY2007 funding from VA General Assembly Study feasibility of developing CIT programs

in other communities Train the Trainer

Development of Thomas Jefferson Area CIT and Hampton-Newport News CIT

CIT Legislation & Codification

SB 1294 – CIT Program Statewide Development Virginia Departments of Criminal Justice

Services (DCJS) & Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS)

Virginia Code § 9.1-187 through 190 Support development & establishment of CIT

programs Criteria for assessment of effectiveness Development of minimum training criteria Development of protocol for custody transfer Assess impact and effectiveness

Virginia CIT Coalition

VA CIT Coalition

Mission: To promote and support the effective

development and implementation of CIT programs in Virginia in order to improve the criminal justice and mental health systems and help to prevent the inappropriate incarceration of individuals with mental illness.

VA CIT Coalition

Goals:1. Assist communities to establish,

support and maintain consistent, effective training standards for CIT programs

40-hour CIT Training Dispatcher Training Train the Trainer Training In-service Refresher Training Cross-training Among Stakeholders

VA CIT Coalition

Goals (Cont’d):2. Assist communities to establish,

support and maintain consistent, effective infrastructure standards for CIT programs

Law enforcement and mental health policies and procedures

Therapeutic alternatives to incarceration, including improved protocols and assessment site options

VA CIT Coalition

Goals (Cont’d):3. Assist communities to establish,

support and maintain consistent, effective data collection and information support processes for CIT programs

4. Assist communities to establish, support and maintain effective community mental health and criminal justice stakeholder collaboration

VA CIT Coalition Structure:

Leadership Committee Provide leadership to and coordinate statewide effort

to work in partnership with local communities planning, implementing or maintaining CIT programs

Community & Infrastructure Committee Develop minimum standards around community and

stakeholder involvement, oversight and infrastructure Training Committee

Develop minimum standards for various CIT trainings Data & Evaluation Committee

Develop protocol and minimum standards for data collection

VA CIT Coalition

Meetings & Communication: Quarterly Meetings

Program Sharing Technical Assistance

Website www.vacitcoalition.org

E-Newsletter Email Listserv

VA CIT Coalition

VA CIT Coalition

Essential Elements for CIT Development in

Virginia Community & Infrastructure

Community Partnerships Oversight Coordination

Infrastructure Data Collection Policies Access to treatment and services

Receiving Facility, Triage, Assessment, Protocols

Essential Elements for CIT Development in Virginia

Training Curricula

40-hour Training Program Length Content and Layout

Train the Trainer Dispatcher Training

Implementation of

CIT Expansion in Virginia Training & Mentorship Program

Funded through DBHDS in partnership with DCJS

Utilization of New River Valley, Thomas Jefferson Area and Hampton-Newport News CIT Programs

‘Free’ training to new programs in development

‘Free’ technical assistance and support

Progress of VA CIT Coalition

•22 distinct CIT initiatives -- representing over 50% of the Commonwealth – are developing or operating CIT programs

•Over 1,000 law enforcement personnel have received the 40 hour CIT training

•The 200+ members of the Virginia CIT Coalition work with DBHDS and DCJS to provide technical assistance, resource sharing and guide statutory oversight

Rapid Pace of Development

40 hr Trainings:

Virginia’s Lessons Learned

Context & Consistency Matter Minimum criteria allows for flexibility within

unique, disparate communities Partnerships

State agency partnerships should mirror local partnerships

Community Awareness and Advocacy Local, statewide and legislative outreach and

education Data Statewide Communication Mechanism

Criminal Justice and Mental Health Transformation

Starts with the First Intervention

Thoughts or Questions?Victoria Cochran, JD

State Coordinator for Criminal Justice & Behavioral Health InitiativesVirginia Department of Behavioral Health & Developmental Services

victoria@victoriacochran.com

Tim PaulCertifications Center Manager

Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Servicestim.paul@dcjs.virginia.gov

Patrick Halpern, MPIAExecutive Director, Mental Health Association of the New River Valley

New River Valley Crisis Intervention Teamphalpern@mhanrv.org

Joseph Yost, MSJail Diversion Coordinator, Mental Health Association of the New River Valley

New River Valley Crisis Intervention Teamjyost@mhanrv.org