WPost Praises Virginia County’s Plan To Keep Nonviolent Individuals With Mental Illness Out Of Jail.
In an editorial, the Washington Post (9/21) writes that Virginia’s Fairfax County “has a plan to establish a fledgling program, starting Jan. 1, to divert nonviolent people who have mental illness to a county-run crisis center.”
Instead of “jailing them, police officers, trained to detect the signs of mental health crises, would be able to hand them off to a team of professional staff at the center for evaluation and formulation of a treatment plan.” The Post praises such an arrangement, and cites similar models that have been successful across the country.
According to the Post, “The question is whether county officials…have the political will to shake up an entrenched system and whether they will find the dollars to do it.”
Related Links:
— “Treatment, not jail, for mentally ill people,” Washington Post, September 20, 2015.