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1 | AN ACT concerning courts.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Mental | ||||||
5 | Health Court Treatment Act.
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6 | Section 5. Purposes. The General Assembly recognizes that a | ||||||
7 | large percentage of criminal defendants have a diagnosable | ||||||
8 | mental illness and that mental illnesses have a dramatic effect | ||||||
9 | on the criminal justice system in the State of Illinois. The | ||||||
10 | General Assembly also recognizes that mental illness and | ||||||
11 | substance abuse problems co-occur in a substantial percentage | ||||||
12 | of criminal defendants. There is a critical need for a criminal | ||||||
13 | justice system program that will reduce the number of persons | ||||||
14 | with mental illnesses and with co-occurring mental illness and | ||||||
15 | substance abuse problems in the criminal justice system, reduce | ||||||
16 | recidivism among persons with mental illness and with | ||||||
17 | co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse problems, | ||||||
18 | provide appropriate treatment to persons with mental illnesses | ||||||
19 | and co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse problems | ||||||
20 | and reduce the incidence of crimes committed as a result of | ||||||
21 | mental illnesses or co-occurring mental illness and substance | ||||||
22 | abuse problems. It is the intent of the General Assembly to | ||||||
23 | create specialized mental health courts with the necessary |
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1 | flexibility to meet the problems of criminal defendants with | ||||||
2 | mental illnesses and co-occurring mental illness and substance | ||||||
3 | abuse problems in the State of Illinois.
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4 | Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: | ||||||
5 | "Mental health court", "mental health court program", or | ||||||
6 | "program" means a structured judicial intervention process for | ||||||
7 | mental health treatment of eligible defendants that brings | ||||||
8 | together mental health professionals, local social programs, | ||||||
9 | and intensive judicial monitoring. | ||||||
10 | "Mental health court professional" means a judge, | ||||||
11 | prosecutor, defense attorney, probation officer, or treatment | ||||||
12 | provider involved with the mental health court program. | ||||||
13 | "Pre-adjudicatory mental health court program" means a | ||||||
14 | program that allows the defendant, with the consent of the | ||||||
15 | prosecution, to expedite the defendant's criminal case before | ||||||
16 | conviction or before filing of a criminal case and requires | ||||||
17 | successful completion of the mental health court program as | ||||||
18 | part of the agreement. | ||||||
19 | "Post-adjudicatory mental health court program" means a | ||||||
20 | program in which the defendant has admitted guilt or has been | ||||||
21 | found guilty and agrees, along with the prosecution, to enter a | ||||||
22 | mental health court program as part of the defendant's | ||||||
23 | sentence. | ||||||
24 | "Combination mental health court program" means a mental | ||||||
25 | health court program that
includes a pre-adjudicatory mental |
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1 | health court program and a post-adjudicatory mental health | ||||||
2 | court program. | ||||||
3 | "Co-occurring mental health and substance abuse court | ||||||
4 | program" means a program that includes persons with | ||||||
5 | co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse problems. Such | ||||||
6 | programs
shall include professionals with training and | ||||||
7 | experience in treating persons with substance abuse problems | ||||||
8 | and mental illness.
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9 | Section 15. Authorization. The Chief Judge of each judicial | ||||||
10 | circuit may establish a mental health court program, including | ||||||
11 | the format under which it operates under this Act.
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12 | Section 20. Eligibility. | ||||||
13 | (a) A defendant may be admitted into a mental health court | ||||||
14 | program only upon the agreement of the prosecutor and the | ||||||
15 | defendant and with the approval of the court. | ||||||
16 | (b) A defendant shall be excluded from a mental health | ||||||
17 | court program if any of one of the following applies: | ||||||
18 | (1) The crime is a crime of violence as set forth in | ||||||
19 | clause (3) of this subsection (b). | ||||||
20 | (2) The defendant does not demonstrate a willingness to | ||||||
21 | participate in a treatment program. | ||||||
22 | (3) The defendant has been convicted of a crime of | ||||||
23 | violence within the past 10 years excluding incarceration | ||||||
24 | time, specifically first degree murder, second degree |
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1 | murder, predatory criminal sexual assault of a child, | ||||||
2 | aggravated criminal sexual assault, criminal sexual | ||||||
3 | assault, armed robbery, aggravated arson, arson, | ||||||
4 | aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping, stalking, aggravated | ||||||
5 | stalking, or any offense involving the discharge of a | ||||||
6 | firearm. | ||||||
7 | (4) The defendant has previously completed or has been | ||||||
8 | discharged from a mental health court program within 3 | ||||||
9 | years of completion or discharge.
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10 | Section 25. Procedure. | ||||||
11 | (a) The court shall require an eligibility screening and an | ||||||
12 | assessment of the defendant. An assessment need not be ordered | ||||||
13 | if the court finds a valid assessment related to the present | ||||||
14 | charge pending against the defendant has been completed within | ||||||
15 | the previous 60 days. | ||||||
16 | (b) The judge shall inform the defendant that if the | ||||||
17 | defendant fails to meet the requirements of the mental health | ||||||
18 | court program, eligibility to participate in the program may be | ||||||
19 | revoked and the defendant may be sentenced or the prosecution | ||||||
20 | continued, as provided in the Unified Code of Corrections, for | ||||||
21 | the crime charged. | ||||||
22 | (c) The defendant shall execute a written agreement as to | ||||||
23 | his or her participation in the program and shall agree to all | ||||||
24 | of the terms and conditions of the program, including but not | ||||||
25 | limited to the possibility of sanctions or incarceration for |
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1 | failing to abide or comply with the terms of the program. | ||||||
2 | (d) In addition to any conditions authorized under the | ||||||
3 | Pretrial Services Act and Section 5-6-3 of the Unified Code of | ||||||
4 | Corrections, the court may order the defendant to complete | ||||||
5 | mental health or substance abuse treatment in an outpatient, | ||||||
6 | inpatient, residential, or jail-based custodial treatment | ||||||
7 | program. Any period of time a defendant shall serve in a | ||||||
8 | jail-based treatment program may not be reduced by the | ||||||
9 | accumulation of good time or other credits and may be for a | ||||||
10 | period of up to 120 days. | ||||||
11 | (e) The mental health court program may include a regimen | ||||||
12 | of graduated requirements and rewards and sanctions, including | ||||||
13 | but not limited to: fines, fees, costs, restitution, | ||||||
14 | incarceration of up to 180 days, individual and group therapy, | ||||||
15 | medication, drug analysis testing, close monitoring by the | ||||||
16 | court and supervision of progress, educational or vocational | ||||||
17 | counseling as appropriate and other requirements necessary to | ||||||
18 | fulfill the mental health court program.
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19 | Section 30. Mental health and substance abuse treatment. | ||||||
20 | (a) The mental health court program may maintain or | ||||||
21 | collaborate with a network of mental
health treatment programs | ||||||
22 | and, if it is a co-occurring mental health and substance abuse | ||||||
23 | court program, a network of substance abuse treatment programs | ||||||
24 | representing a continuum of treatment options commensurate | ||||||
25 | with the needs of defendants and available resources. |
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1 | (b) Any substance abuse treatment program to which | ||||||
2 | defendants are referred must meet all of the rules and | ||||||
3 | governing programs in Parts 2030 and 2060 of Title 77 of the | ||||||
4 | Illinois Administrative Code. | ||||||
5 | (c) The mental health court program may, at its discretion, | ||||||
6 | employ additional services or interventions, as it deems | ||||||
7 | necessary on a case by case basis.
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8 | Section 35. Violation; termination; discharge.
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9 | (a) If the court finds from the evidence presented, | ||||||
10 | including but not limited to the reports or proffers of proof | ||||||
11 | from the mental health court professionals that: | ||||||
12 | (1) the defendant is not performing satisfactorily in | ||||||
13 | the assigned program; | ||||||
14 | (2) the defendant is not benefiting from education, | ||||||
15 | treatment, or rehabilitation; | ||||||
16 | (3) the defendant has engaged in criminal conduct | ||||||
17 | rendering him or her unsuitable for the program; or | ||||||
18 | (4) the defendant has otherwise violated the terms and | ||||||
19 | conditions of the program or his or her sentence or is for | ||||||
20 | any reason unable to participate;
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21 | the court may impose reasonable sanctions under prior written | ||||||
22 | agreement of the defendant, including but not limited to | ||||||
23 | imprisonment or dismissal of the defendant from the program; | ||||||
24 | and the court may reinstate criminal proceedings against him or | ||||||
25 | her or proceed under Section 5-6-4 of the Unified Code of |
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1 | Corrections for a violation of probation, conditional | ||||||
2 | discharge, or supervision hearing.
No defendant may be | ||||||
3 | dismissed from the program unless, prior to such dismissal, the | ||||||
4 | defendant is informed in writing: (i) of the reason or reasons | ||||||
5 | for the dismissal; (ii) the evidentiary basis supporting the | ||||||
6 | reason or reasons for the dismissal; (iii) that the defendant | ||||||
7 | has a right to a hearing at
which he or she may present | ||||||
8 | evidence supporting his or her continuation in the program. | ||||||
9 | Based upon the evidence presented, the court shall determine | ||||||
10 | whether the defendant has violated the conditions of the | ||||||
11 | program and whether the defendant should be dismissed from the | ||||||
12 | program or whether some other alternative may be appropriate in | ||||||
13 | the interests of the defendant and the public. | ||||||
14 | (b) Upon successful completion of the terms and conditions | ||||||
15 | of the program, the court may dismiss the original charges | ||||||
16 | against the defendant or successfully terminate the | ||||||
17 | defendant's sentence or otherwise discharge him or her from the | ||||||
18 | program or from any further proceedings against him or her in | ||||||
19 | the original prosecution.
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