Thurston County is set to pilot its voluntary Thurston County - Court Alternative Program (TC-CAP), a hybrid version of San Diego's Homeless Court, through a 12-month program to be launched on December 1, 2024.
TC-CAP gives indigent individuals a pathway to easily connect to community-based service providers, which officials say would aid in addressing the root cause of the participants' criminal behavior and limit their interaction with the law.
Service providers in homeless courts assist and encourage participants to take responsibility for their actions by giving "credit for time served." This allows the individuals to receive services that address the underlying cause of their homelessness while reconciling their legal involvement.
The program helps reduce strain on District Court and attorney caseloads, as stated in the county's news release today.
Patrick O'Connor, Director of Thurston County's Office of Public Defense said, "Our office lends its full support to the TC-CAP program. Our defenders are overloaded with unsustainable caseloads and this program offers the opportunity to achieve better outcomes for individuals and promote public safety at the same time."
At a commissioners' work session on Monday, October 21, Criminal Justice Regional Program Manager Leah Landon presented the program's implementation committee, road map, guidelines, and handbook.
The idea came to the county when Landon and Commissioner Carolina Mejia visited San Diego's Homeless Court in July 2023.
"Based on my experience working for Superior Court and witnessing our community members struggling, I proposed this program four years ago when I first took office," Commissioner Mejia stated in the news release.
"It's incredibly rewarding to see it brought to life. Connecting individuals to the services they need can make all the difference in their journey. I am eager to see the positive impact this program will bring to Thurston County," added Mejia.
During the fall of 2023, Landon's team formulated a proposal for what TC-CAP would look like, and the proposal was presented to the Board of County Commissioners in September 2023.
In the news release, Landon said that TC-CAP is being implemented using existing resources, and no additional county funds are being used.
The program's funding was originally set aside from the Treatment Sales Tax, the Veterans Fund, and the Housing Fund, but the TC-CAP Implementation Committee determined it was unnecessary.
In January this year, Landon started convening the TC-CAP Implementation Committee with their various roles for TC-CAP.
Initial service providers as of this week are the Olympic Health & Recovery Services - Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD), Catholic Community Services - Arrest and Jail Alternatives (AJA) Program, and Capital Recovery Center.
The TC-CAP Handbook was also completed in September, before the October 21 presentation to the BoCC.
The first step is determining whether an individual is eligible by looking at whether they have committed a misdemeanor, gross misdemeanor, simple possession charge, or outstanding warrant in District Court.
Next, an individual's public defender and the assigned prosecuting attorney would have to agree the person would be a good fit and if the person agrees to participate, they are connected to the Resource Hub.
After collating information from the authority and individual, Resource Hub staff then connects the participant with a service provider.
Once connected and after necessary assessments have been completed, an individualized service plan is created, aiming to address the underlying cause of their criminal behavior and any additional service needs the participant has.
Next, a participant's hearing date is set within 6 months, and they are expected to engage with their provider until the next hearing.
Resource Hub staff will request an Advocacy Letter from the service provider one month before a participant's hearing date.
The Review Team, composed of a prosecutor, public defender, applicable service providers, and Resource Hub staff, will then discuss the participant's Advocacy Letter and decide how to move forward.
The Criminal Justice Regional Program Manager and the Resource Hub Program Manager will chair the team during the pilot. After program development, the responsibilities will be passed on to Resource Hub staff.
Next, the ex parte motion, which moves forward with legal action without the presence or input of the other party, will be filed, or the matter will be set before the court depending on the Review Team's decision. The participant is notified either way.
After the case is resolved, the participant is invited to celebrate their Graduation Ceremony.
At present, a 12-month pilot program would follow a system that would accommodate five participants for its first month.
Three additional participants will be added during month two, and another two will be added during month three during the pilot's duration.
After the 12-month pilot, a Final Report will be presented to the Board of County Commissioners (BoCC).
As TC-CAP is voluntary, individuals cannot be ordered to participate. Once in the program, they can leave at any point and return to the traditional court system.
TC-CAP does not require ongoing compliance monitoring by Thurston County courts or Pretrial Services. Instead, participants work with community-based service providers and are not required to connect with the traditional court system until their next hearing.
If someone decides to leave the program or it does not work for them, they will not be punished for their participation. Leaving participants are simply brought back into the traditional system.
Program details can be browsed at the county site.
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