New program: Making a difference in people’s lives

Naomi Cataudella and Paul Leffingwell have been in their roles as AID clinicians at the Douglas County Jail for less than two years. But in that short time the program has quickly gained national attention.

AID stands for Assess, Identify, and Divert. The unique program is a collaboration between Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare. Professors Jason Matejkowski and Margaret Severson of The KU School of Social Welfare helped design the program, provide regular feedback to the AID team about the status of the AID participants and conduct program evaluations.

“To the best of our knowledge, we are the only jail in the country doing this level of mental health screening and assessment,” said Mike Brouwer, reentry director with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. “And the only jail providing case management based on assessment to help pretrial individuals transition back into the community.”

In March, the AID program was chosen as one of nine best practices by the Stepping Up Initiative, which is a national initiative to reduce the number of people with mental illnesses in jails. The nine best-practice sites, including Douglas County, presented programs in June in Washington, D.C. and then spent two days providing technical training at the Best Practices Implementation Academy. Cataudella, Brouwer, Douglas County Criminal Justice Coordinator Robert Bieniecki and Douglas County Commissioner Mike Gaughan presented.

Previously, in September 2016, Leffingwell and Brouwer gave a presentation about the AID program in Salt Lake City at the National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies Conference.

“We’re really proud of the work our entire jail team is doing and we’re equally proud of our collaboration with Douglas County and KU,” said Sharon Zehr, leader of the Bert Nash jail team. “This program is making a difference in people’s lives and helping them get the services they need.”

The AID program serves people believed to have a serious mental illness, as well as women and veterans. Statistically, about 30 percent of people booked into the Douglas County jail report having a mental illness. The AID clinicians don’t work with violent offenders or anyone who has a charge against them in another county but is being held at the Douglas County Jail, and the person must be a Douglas County resident. The screening instrument explores mental health issues, substance use, histories of trauma, and criminal justice involvement.

Often people who suffer from mental health issues are misclassified to be of a criminal nature, and often an ill-founded arrest warrant might be brought up against them. Although they might have access to a lawyer who could successfully get them off, it still leaves them with the unresolved trauma of going through the legal system while being wrongfully accused. These people are then in need of comprehensive help which they can get with the help of a criminal defense attorney.

The AID program is part of a larger plan of mental health services the county has implemented to reduce the number of people with mental illness in jail. As the AID clinicians, Cataudella and Leffingwell do the screenings and assessments, make referrals for services, and work closely with the criminal justice system on behalf of the client.

The AID team conducts screenings and assessments Monday through Friday, typically within 24 to 36 hours after someone is booked into the jail. On average, a screening takes 30 to 45 minutes.

As an example of how the AID program helps people with mental illness after they are booked into the jail, Leffingwell said of a client, "We help him get to court when he’s supposed to be there and to get to the community services he needs. If not for this program, he would be back in jail every two weeks. But with these interventions, it keeps him in the community and out of the criminal justice system.” Leffingwell said the client and others like him may have gotten lost in the system in the past and they oftentimes don’t have the wherewithal to advocate for themselves. That’s where the AID program can help people who have a serious mental illness and find themselves caught up in the criminal justice system.

“We try to provide information and support for someone with mental health issues or trauma and offer solutions to their situation that lie outside of incarceration,” Leffingwell said. “We’re not on the district attorney’s side. We’re not on the defense attorney’s side. We’re on the client’s side.”