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Group to get help for jailed mentally ill
By MATTHEW WAITE, Times Staff Writer NEW PORT RICHEY -- Pasco County criminal justice officials agreed Monday to a series of changes that they hope will help identify psychologically troubled misdemeanor offenders early and get them out of jail and into treatment centers. The Pasco County Public Safety Coordinating Council -- a group made up of judges, sheriff's officials, prosecutors, public defenders, county officials and mental health advocates that meets quarterly -- agreed Monday to the three-part project that identifies, evaluates and assists misdemeanor offenders who have mental health problems. Misdemeanor offenders with mental problems can languish in the county jail for more than a month, waiting for prosecutors and public defenders to hire their own psychologists to perform two evaluations, Pasco County Judge William Sestak said. Often, Sestak said, the wait for an evaluation is longer than the jail time for the offense, such as trespassing or disorderly conduct, would have called for. Sestak said county officials were working with the Harbor, a New Port Richey mental health and drug treatment center, to get a staff psychologist hired so judges can make one call for an evaluation. The psychologist would work on-call and could quickly provide an evaluation for prosecutors and defense attorneys, saving the state money. Then, once the offenders' competency is evaluated, the program encourages that they be taken out of jail and placed in a treatment program, such as an assisted-living facility, that can get them help. "It's designed to get the person who shouldn't be in jail out of jail," said Robert Dillinger, the Pasco-Pinellas public defender. That will help the offender, who needs help, and the jail, which needs the space. Sestak warned, however, that the program would not be for certain violent offenders. "This is not a panacea that's going to help everyone that comes down the pike," he said. "Some cases, we may not be able to do anything because of the charge." Pasco County Sheriff Bob White said he was concerned that offenders may commit other crimes while being treated. Pasco County Circuit Judge William Webb said the group would be careful to match the offender with a facility that could deal with them. -- Matthew Waite can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6247 or toll free at 1-800- 333-7505, ext. 6247. His e-mail address is waite@sptimes.com.
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From today's Pasco Times Letters |
