BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - A county in North Dakota is taking a proactive approach to identifying jail inmates with mental health or addiction issues in hopes of cutting down on their time behind bars.
Burleigh County has hired behavioral health specialist Mark Kemmet to screen people entering jail and received a federal grant to study incarceration rates of people with mental health and addiction problems, The Bismarck Tribune (https://bit.ly/2hMzwil ) reported.
“What we see a lot with these people with behavioral health issues, they end up spending more time in jail than someone who doesn’t have those issues,” Kemmet said, noting that in some cases jail can become a default location for people with behavioral issues.
Kemmet has spent 19 years with the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, first working as a correctional officer and later as a probation officer for the Bismarck-Mandan DUI Drug Court.
Maj. Steve Hall of the Burleigh County Sheriff’s Department said jail employees screen inmates using an eight-question form related to mental health. Based on an inmate’s answers, Kemmet may be asked to do further assessments.
“It’s a nationwide epidemic that people with mental health (issues) and addiction are ending up in the criminal justice system in very high rates. It’s not just in North Dakota,” Hall said.
He said people with behavioral health problems who need assistance and find themselves “stuck in the system” will receive help based on their needs, “whether it’s a court-appointed attorney, an advocate, whatever they need.”
The jail has also received a federal grant to further look into incarceration rates of people with mental health problems and drug addictions.
Burleigh County has partnered with the Heartview Foundation to create a web-based portal that inmates can use to direct them to services, such as treatment programs.
In the spring, Burleigh County partnered with Morton County to open a new $69 million, 475-bed jail. Kemmet is hoping the new facility will offer more programs related to behavioral health and hire another staff member.
According to the newspaper, jails across the country have or are considering implementing similar mental health or behavioral health professionals in their facilities.
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Information from: Bismarck Tribune, https://www.bismarcktribune.com
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