Penobscot County Sheriff's Office Mental Health Collaboration Program

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) FY20 Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (JMHCP) supports cross-system collaboration to improve public safety responses and outcomes for individuals with mental illnesses (MI) or co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse (CMISA) who come into contact with the justice system. This program supports public safety efforts through partnerships with social services and other organizations that will enhance responses to people with MI and CMISA. All FY20 JMHCP grant recipients will follow a two-phase process consisting of planning and implementation activities during which grantees will develop a coordinated approach to implementing or enhancing services for justice-involved individuals with MI and CMISA. The planning phase can be for up to 12 months and the implementation phase will begin once the grantee has met the requirements of the planning phase and will continue for the remaining time of the grant. At least one criminal justice agency and one mental health agency will participate in the administration of the program.

Under the FY20 JMHCP Purpose Area 3, the recipient will plan and implement a project that supports law enforcement and prosecutors to respond to and mitigate threats of targeted violence. This purpose area addresses the issue of law enforcement faced with threats from violent individuals, often enhanced or complicated by life stressors such as mental illness and substance abuse. The recipient can use funds for state and local prosecutors and investigators to seek assistance from mental health professionals and threat assessment experts to identify and disrupt individuals who are mobilizing toward violence. This may involve building multidisciplinary threat assessment and threat management teams, including both law enforcement and non-law enforcement stakeholders, threat assessment professionals, intervention teams, and community groups to assist in the prevention of threats posed by individuals mobilizing toward violence. CA/NCF