Services Address Mental Health and Substance Abuse
The California Board of State and Community Corrections announced it will grant $990,000 to Placer County to fund rehabilitative programs for young adults aged 18-32.
In total, $103 million in estimated state savings from the enactment of Proposition 47 was awarded to 23 applicants. Proposition 47 passed in 2014 and allowed some low-level, nonviolent felonies to be reduced to misdemeanors.
Placer County will use these funds to deliver services addressing mental health and substance abuse issues in young adults – a population at high risk of reoffending. Half of arrests in Placer County in 2015 were of adults aged 18-32.
“We’re trying to fill a need and serve a population where, if you can catch them when they’re young, you can really have an impact,” said Jeff Brown, Placer’s director of health and human services. “It can be difficult to engage this age range, so we are going to meet them where they are at.”
The county will work with partner agencies to develop wraparound services modeled on similar efforts in the juvenile system. In addition to mental health and substance abuse treatment, these services might include housing assistance, vocational or educational training, peer mentoring or other activities tailored to the needs of individual clients, while probation will track compliance and enforce accountability.
The county’s probation and health and human services departments jointly applied for the grant.
“Providing services and support that address the multiple needs of young adult offenders provides a good opportunity to change negative behaviors, which in turn increases accountability to the community and enhances public safety,” said David McManus, the county’s assistant chief probation officer.
“Working collaboratively with our county partners, as well as our community partners, we are better able to support change,” Brown said.
