Multnomah County and other local and state governments across the country are participating in a White House-led initiative to divert low-level offenders with mental illness out of the criminal justice system and keep low-risk offenders from longer stays in jail.
The White House Data-Driven Justice Initiative focuses on using data from both criminal justice and health system partners to identify the people with the highest number of contacts with police, ambulance, emergency departments and other services and link them to health, behavioral health and social services.
The program aims to reduce the cost and congestion of jails, which cost taxpayers an estimated $22 billion per year. Much of it is spent on minor offenses and low-level, non-violent misdemeanors.
In Multnomah County, jails cost over $89 million per year according to FY2014 data collected by the VERA Survey of Jail Expenses and Revenues.
“Chronically homeless individuals with mental illness, substance abuse and health problems would often be better served through avenues other than jail,” said Multnomah County Commissioner Judy Shiprack.
“We appreciate the White House leadership on this issue. The timing is great because the county already has and continues to make changes based on data-driven justice principles.”
In June, the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners committed to funding two pilot programs. The Multnomah Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program, is based on a comparable pilot program in Seattle. LEAD will divert some individuals arrested for drug possession from jail to healthcare and social services. The focus of the program will be on stabilizing services such as housing and alcohol and drug treatment.
The county also funded a mental health assessment pilot where a registered nurse will conduct a mental health screening and divert people with mental illness from the jail whenever possible. The program will also provide a quicker triage and assessment for those booked and housed in jail or booked and later released.
The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners also committed to: reducing jail beds by 118 this fiscal year; making improvements to the shared Multnomah County public safety data system; and requiring public safety partners to report data on impacts to communities of color.
“It’s our communities of color who are more likely to be impacted and the same goes for the poor and lower income individuals and families,” said Commissioner Shiprack “These actions hold us accountable when it comes to public safety in our community. It’s not a decision, it’s a must. “