In january 2022, with the support of the orange county superior court and public defender, the anaheim city attorney launched the anaheim collaborative court-evaluating strategies and solutions…

This federal Project Grant award of $550,000 was provided by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) under the Criminal and Juvenile Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program (CFDA 16.745). The grant funding will enable the City of Anaheim to scale up its Anaheim Collaborative Court-Evaluating Strategies and Solutions (ACCESS) program, a prosecution-led, misdemeanor pre-trial diversion initiative designed to connect homeless individuals suffering from mental health or co-occurring disorders with community resources and support services. Specifically, the grant will fund courtroom assessments and a program evaluation in partnership with the Center for Justice Innovation, with the goal of informing system-wide changes to the justice system in Orange County and beyond. The award period runs from October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2027.

In january 2022, with the support of the orange county superior court and public defender, the anaheim city attorney launched the anaheim collaborative court-evaluating strategies and solutions (access), a prosecution led, misdemeanor pre-trial diversion program designed for homeless individuals suffering from mental health disorders or CO-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. The purpose of access is to connect the court with community resources so that our system of justice may support, rather than undermine, the stability and sobriety of those whose criminality is inextricably intertwined with their disease and housing insecurity. The heart of access is the multidisciplinary courtroom team consisting of a judge, prosecutor, public defender, clinician, peer lead and coordinator. In order to sustain and expand access, the anaheim city attorney is seeking federal assistance to fund critical programmatic components that lack immediate resource streams. Federal funds will enable access to scale up courtroom assessments and contract with the center for justice innovation to inform data collection in anticipation of an exhaustive program evaluation which may inform system change for the entire orange county justice system and beyond. There are no planned conference activities for the recommended award.