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Mental health courts have proliferated in recent years, yet there has been little qualitative study of how such courts function. This book begins to fill this gap in the literature by addressing the question: what organizational obstacles do mental health court workers face during the diversion process and how do they overcome them? Using the Diversion Treatment Court (DTC) in Decatur, Georgia as a case study, this research suggests that obstacles largely stem from structural factors. Structural barriers to successful diversion arise as the DTC must function as a collaboration between many disparate agencies representing the large, inflexible, and largely incompatible criminal justice/mental health systems. Yet, the court`s ability to overcome obstacles depends on individual agency. Successful mental health diversion programs will therefore need individuals with inter-agency pull and dynamic personalities to build the program, weather obstacles and produce innovative solutions to procedural snags. This analysis will be especially useful to professionals seeking to develop/refine diversion courts or scholars interested in the complications endemic to collaborative organizations.

Overcoming Operational Obstacles in a Mental Health Court: An Organizational Analysis