Community Support Programs Branch
Criminal Justice and Mental Health
For over a decade, the Community Support Programs (CSP) Branch has played a leadership role in developing and putting into use knowledge about necessary collaborations between mental health and criminal justice.
At some point in their lives, up to 40 percent of adults who suffer from serious mental illnesses are likely to come into contact with the criminal justice system. Arrests for activities resulting from mental illness can either lead to jail and a cycle of homelessness, incarceration, and despair, or alternatively, to community treatment, recovery, and hope.
The CSP Branch supports the widespread adoption of adult criminal justice diversion and re-entry strategies for nonviolent adult offenders with mental illnesses. The ultimate goal for these programs is to divert persons from inappropriate incarceration to community-based treatment. Click here to see a listing of counties that operate jail diversion programs
The CSP Branch offers a variety of supports and partnerships:
Working with Federal partners, the CSP Branch provides information, resources, and technical assistance to consumers, families, advocates, supporters, communities, providers, administrators, policymakers, and the states through its support of the:
The CSP Branch and its Federal partners provide funding to communities and states that seek to implement innovative efforts that bring system-wide improvement to the way that the needs of adults with mental health, substance abuse, and co-occurring problems are addressed within the criminal justice system including:
The CSP Branch continues to work with partners such as the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Institute of Corrections, and the Office for Victims crimes to address issues around the overlap between the criminal justice and mental health care system including:
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