Criminal Justice and Behavioral Health Care Costs of Mental Health Court Participants: A Six-Year Study

Advocates of mental health courts (MHCs) contend that the courts offer a more humane and cost-effective way to meet the treatment needs of persons with mental illness in the criminal justice system. The authors report on a multisite, case-control investigation examining the economic part of that argument, comparing costs for criminal justice and behavioral health treatment for MHC participants and a matched sample of detainees who received psychiatric services in jail. Criminal justice expenses were less for the MHC participants, but the possibility that the savings would be offset by treatment savings was not borne out.