Legal Publications as Advocacy Projects: NAMI-Texas

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Legal Publications as Advocacy ProjectsNAMI-Texa
s Texas-Appleseed

• Jacqueline Shannon, NAMI-Texas
• Brian D. Shannon, NAMI-Texas, Texas Tech
  School of Law
• Deborah Fowler, Texas-Appleseed

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Texas Criminal Procedure the Offender with
Mental Illness An Analysis Guide

• A NAMI-Texas Advocacy Project

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Navigating the Criminal Justice Maze

• Training Lawyers to More Effectively Represent
  People with Mental Illnesses

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Meeting the Need

• Criminal Justice System becoming the new mental
  health system
• Families needing information to navigate the maze
• Developing first informational materials aimed at
  assisting families
• Other requests for materials

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The First Book

• Idea formed about developing a book
• Authors agreeing to write if funding found
• Grant written to the Texas Bar Foundation-funded
  in 1993
• Texas Criminal Procedure and the Offender with
  Mental Illness1st edition in 1994

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Outreach

• Widely distributed free of charge to legislators,
  county and district court judges, district
  attorneys, criminal defense attorneys, mental
  health groups, families, Texas law libraries, and
  to community mental health centers.
• High demand for the book resulted in additional
  printings
• Grant from Texas Council of Community MHMR
  Centers funded additional printing.

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Second Publication

• Recognition of the dramatic increase of persons
  with mental illnesses in prisons and jails
• 1999 2nd edition of the book reflected the many
  changes in the laws relating to offenders and
  alleged offenders with mental illnesses
• Funded again by grant from the Texas Bar
  Foundation
• Web-based version made available

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Third Edition-The Need

• 2003-Legislature completely overhauled the
  states criminal competency statute
• 2003-Texas community MHMR centers required to
  develop jail diversion plans
• Other substantial changes in laws dictated need
  for new edition of book

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Texas Criminal Procedure and the Offender with
Mental Illness-3rd Edition

• Published- January, 2005
• Distributed to Legislators, attorneys, judges,
  community mental health centers, etc.
• NAMI Texas website has the full edition
  http//namitexas.org

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• Scope of Projects
• Similar Book on Civil Commitments in Print
• Dearth of Information About Criminal Process
• Timing for 1st ed. Coincided with Diversion
  Legislation
• Need for subsequent editions

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• Funding
• Initial Rejection by Hogg Foundation
• Funding Grant by Texas Bar Foundation
• Additional Funds from Texas Council for Community
  MHMR Centers

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• Securing Authors
• NAMI tie-in
• Law Schools
• - Faculty
• - Clinics
• - Law Journal Project
• ? Pro Bono Law Firm

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• DISTRIBUTION
• Make it FREE
• Judges, Prosecutors, Defense Attorneys, Juvenile
  Justice System
• State MHMR, Community MHMR Centers, Sheriffs
• Key Legislators (i.e., ALL of them)

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• Why more editions (1999/2004-05)?
• Continual Need for Education
• Criminal Justice Issues Are Critical
• The Legislature Keeps on Meeting
• The MESSAGE is BEING HEARD

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• Recognition

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NAMI Texas Pens a New Bestseller John Grisham
and Scott Turow have nothing on NAMI Texas when
it comes to knowing what the public wants. The
groups Texas Criminal Procedure and the Offender
with Mental Illness An Analysis and Guide is so
popular that it has been out of stock for months,
despite repeated printings. Attorneys, judges,
mental health professionals and families who need
the manual have settled for an online version
because printed copies werent available. With a
major overhaul to the states criminal
competency procedure taking effect on January 1,
2004 and requests for the guide growing, NAMI
Texas turned to the Texas Bar Foundation for
assistance. Twice before in 1993 and 1999 the
Bar Foundation funded production and
distribution. Now, the Texas Bar Foundation has
provided 15,000 for an updated third edition.
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Third Edition 2005
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Coverage

• Intro An opportunity to educate!
• Pre-trial Diversion Statutes
• Criminal Competency
• Insanity Defense
• Adults Juveniles
• Post-conviction

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TEXAS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE The Offender with
Mental Illness

• USE the WEB!!!!
• www.namitexas.org

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Website Opportunities

• Links to Related Sites of Interest
• NAMI, Texas Bar Foundation,
• Texas Appleseed
• Useful Information such as DOJ Reports,
  Lubbock MOU
• Links to the Book from Other Sites
• Further Opportunities to Educate Advocate on
  Your Website
• UPDATES

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Texas Tech School of Law
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Mental Health Attorney FamilyHandbooks

• A Collaborative Approach Addressing a Systemic
  Problem

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The Fair Defense Report December 2000

• Sample of 23 Texas Counties with 61 of the
  States population
• Interviewed judges, attorneys, public defenders,
  prosecutors, defendants, court and jail staff.
• Studied 4 categories of criminal cases
• Felonies and Class A B misdemeanors
• Capital felonies
• Cases involving mentally ill defendants
• Juvenile delinquency

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Counties Studied for Mental Health Information

• Bexar
• Dallas
• Harris
• Hidalgo

• Tarrant
• Travis
• McLennon

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Mental Health Areas Studied

• Identification of Defendants with Mental Illness
• Attorney qualifications and training
• Competency Determinations
• Use of expert witnesses
• Mitigation and Sentencing

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Mental Health Findings

• Attorneys, prosecutors and judges generally
  lacked familiarity with mental disorders and
  their implications for legal proceedings other
  than competency hearings.
• Information collected on a defendants mental
  illness by police, jail staff, or pre-trial
  programs is seldom passed on to attorneys and
  judges.
• The pressure of moving cases off the court docket
  often supersedes efforts to identify a
  defendants mental illness.

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Mental Health Findings (contd)

• Few attorneys had received any training or have
  any special qualifications for representing
  people with mental illness or mental retardation.
• Attorneys and judges were unaware of existing
  laws pertaining to identifying, diverting and
  treating people with mental illness counties
  werent complying with State laws.

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Mental Health Findings (contd)

• Many attorneys and judges believe that competence
  evaluations are too time consuming and expensive
  to do for misdemeanors.
• Only a small number of mental health
  professionals are being used to conduct
  competency hearings. Many lack impartiality and
  independence.

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Mental Health Findings (contd)

• Some counties use the same professionals who
  provide jail treatment to provide consultation
  and court testimony.
• Some defendants can cycle back and forth for
  months or years between jails, courts and state
  hospitals trying to attain competence to stand
  trial.
• Attorneys appear to do little pretrial work,
  diversion, or work to get people out of jail.

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Mental Health Findings (contd)

• Some attorneys and judges believe that defendants
  with mental illness are better off in jail than
  in the community.
• Mental Health Experts are almost never requested
  or appointed except for competency issues.
• Many attorneys need help locating and evaluating
  mental health experts.

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Mental Health Findings (contd)

• Few attorneys seem to work to develop mitigation
  evidence or sentencing alternatives for indigent
  defendants.
• No county had a centralized place to help
  attorneys locate community programs, treatment,
  and residential alternatives.
• Inappropriate dispositions are commonly made for
  defendants with both a mental illness and
  substance abuse problem.

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Mental Health Findings (contd)

• The fast-paced plea bargain process for
  misdemeanants may not serve the longer-term
  interests of the defendant or the community in
  keeping the person from re-offending.
• Studies show that defendants with mental illness
  are incarcerated for longer periods than other
  defendants.

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Attorney Handbook

• 1st Edition published February 2002
• 2nd Edition published February 2004
• 3rd Edition will be published fall 2005.
• Collaboration between Texas Appleseed, Hogg
  Foundation Texas Tech University School of Law.

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Attorney Handbook Table of Contents

• Top Ten Things to Keep in Mind As You Represent a
  Client with Mental Illness.
• What is Mental Illness and Why Should You Care?
• The Fair Defense Act
• The Initial Interview
• Helpful Hints to Obtain Information
• Pretrial Options

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Table of Contents (contd)

• Competence Evaluations and Hearings
• The Insanity Defense
• Use of Expert Mental Health Witnesses,
  Mitigation, and Sentencing Strategies
• Recent Developments
• Glossary of Common Mental Health Terms
• Commonly Prescribed Psychotropic Medications
• Resources for Help

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Family Handbook

• Same publishing schedule.
• Designed to answer FAQ raised by family members
  defendants with mental illness.

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Information Includes

• A section specifically for defendants, outlining
• Information about jail interviews with police and
  others
• How to get/choose a lawyer
• What you should be able to expect from your
  lawyer
• What you should tell your lawyer
• Information about court processes
• Information about pleading guilty

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Information Includes

• A section for families, outlining
• How to make sure your family member is getting
  medicine in jail
• Hiring a lawyer
• Court fees/fines
• What to expect from the lawyer representing your
  family member
• Testifying
• What you can do to help your family member

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Spanish Edition of Family Book

• Same publication schedule.
• Translation of family handbook to assist those
  whose first language is Spanish.