HomeMy WebLinkAbout20152155.tiff WELD COUNTY
OIL G? = CRIMINAL JUSTICE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
`' MEETING MINUTES
Date: Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Centennial Center Building, 3` Floor, Conference Rooms A &B
915 10th Street, Greeley
Present: Judge James Hartmann, Judge Thomas Quammen, Judge Michele Meyer,
Commissioner Barb Kirkmeyer, Jerry Green, Rick Dill, Keith Coleman,
Craig Miller, Jim Merson, Sterling Geesaman, Ryan Broswell, Mike
McCormick, Roger Ainsworth, Thea Carrasco, Dionne Sund, Marci
Hoffman, Dawn Jones, Matt Elbe, Doug Erler and Dianna Campbell
Chair, Judge Hartmann, called the meeting to order at 12:06 p.m.
Introduction of attendees.
AGENDA
1. Meeting Minutes:
A. Judge Quammen motioned to accept the January 13, 2015 meeting minutes with no
changes, Jerry Green seconded and the motion carried.
2. Subcommittee Reports:
A. Sheriff's Office Jail Reports— Sterling Geesaman, Undersheriff, reported on Weld
County Jail Admission Information, 2,699 bookings (7.1% increase from 2013), 601
is the daily average population (increased by 16 persons compared to 2013), average
length of stay is 20.1 days (decreased-3.8% compared to 2013). For April, the
average daily secure population has increased to 632 due to the increase from
warrants and new charges. The analysis of all adult bookings when compared to
2013 shows warrants increased by 14.3%, Failure to Appear(FTA)warrants
increased by 12.6%, new charges increased by 4.69%, traffic related charges
increased by 6.3% and other bookings decreased by 3.5%. Video conferencing has
started to have an impact on transports, Judge Quammen has taken the lead in this and
stated that the DA's office is determining the defendant's location and doing the Writ.
Additionally, Mr. Geesaman reviewed the Detention Division Trend Charts from
January 2012 to December 2014, excluding Pretrial Services supervision program
data. The "Average Length of Stay Prior 36 Months" graph has remained consistent
with the exception of September 2013 with a spike of 26 days. The "Average Daily
Secure Jail Population" graph has remained static over the last 3 years. The "All
Offender Supervised by Sheriff Daily" graph includes populations from Work
Release and EHM. The "Adults Booked into Jail during the Last 36 Months"graph
depicts a recent increase in January, February, and March's bookings due to warrants.
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On the last graph, he denoted that the "Average Number of Client in Jail Alternative
Programs" graph has increased in the last 2 months.
Ryan Broswell presented the Work Release program information. Mr. Broswell noted
that there have been fewer offenders received; however, the population has increased
due to the length of stay. He stated that initial urinalyses of new placements are not
being collected at program entry, but rather within 30 days. This policy change has
decreased the number of regressions due to Protection Order Violations. Work
Release regressions are categorized as minor or serious; regression depends on the
circumstance of the violation. Judge Meyer requested the Work Release client
handbook electronically for review.
Rick Dill added to the Work Release review stating there has been an increase in
number of rule violations with a decrease in census. The use of intejuiediate
sanctions for minor rule violations can be an effective alternative to regression.
Absconders have increased, by one more person per month. Also, noting that the
prior convictions seem to indicate not as an extensive criminal history in the current
population. He would need the specific rule violation to further determine the"why"
behind types of violations for further analysis.
B. Pretrial Services Reports—Dianna Campbell, Pretrial Services Supervisor reported
on the statistics for the Pretrial Services (PTS)program for January through March
2015. She reported on average year-to-date, 89.8%public safety rate, which means
that 544 cases did not have new alleged charges out of 606 closed cases. Of the new
alleged charges, 4% were felonies and 6% were misdemeanors. Technical violations
are typically positive urinalyses, missed urinalyses and lost contact; the technical
compliance rate is 88.6%. Judge Hartmann inquired the most common reason for
technical violations. Dianna commented that the majority of the technical violations
are due to monitored sobriety versus contact standards. The Court Appearance Rate is
85.8% that 521 cases had no FTA's, 9% of the closed cases that had FTA had
pending felony charges and 5% had pending misdemeanor charges. Every morning,
Pretrial Services (PTS)personnel complete a risk assessment on new arrestees, using
the Colorado Pretrial Assessment Tool (CPAT). This assessment is contained within
Pretrial Services Bail Report. Staff gathers information on the defendant's ties to the
community, drug/alcohol use and criminal history. Year to date, PTS has completed
707 assessments (Bail Reports) with a 66% completion rate. Of the Bail Reports
completed, 36% of those go to pretrial release supervision. The CPAT has four
categories, 1 is low risk and 4 is high risk. The assessments completed by PTS are
comparable to distribution of the CPAT research, with 47% in category 2. In
reviewing supervision, PTS is averaging 181 monthly intakes by defendant, an
average population of 839 cases and closing 202 cases monthly. Again, the
supervision category distribution is comparable to the CPAT research and Dianna
mentioned that further category information would be detailed at the next Pretrial
Services Advisory Board meeting. Of the closed cases, 64% were via financial
releases and 36% were non-financial releases. Judge Quammen inquired about the
69% of Complaint Affidavits submitted to the DA's office resulting in a Motion for
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Revocation. Thea Carrasco stated that the Complaint Affidavits are being received
and processed by the DA's office; however, those due to near case resolution are not
always filed as motions for alleged breach of bond.
Judge Hartmann stated that a new law went into effect March 25, that every
Protection Order for Failure to Register charges must be acknowledged on record and
in writing on bond. It is unknown the impact of this law at this time.
C. Mental Health / Criminal Justice Committee and Intensive Services Campus
facility and programs updates-Mike McCormick,NRBH, stated that the Crisis
Response Team commemorated its fourth month. The Crisis Response Team has
focused on marketing, engaging community partners and some fine-tuning. The
respite care program has the capacity of 10 beds and they are averaging 7-8 beds on
daily basis. How to better serve South Weld County are the next steps for the
program, outreaching to the outlying areas.
D. Justice System Analysis and Reports - Rick Dill, contract Criminal Justice Analyst
for Weld County,reviewed the MH/CJ Strategic Group Issues Tracking Summary in
its new format that was updated from the March 20 meeting. He highlighted that
intake appointments are occurring within 7 days on average since fully staffed.
Medication appears to be generally available during the time from institutional
release to entry into community-based services. Intake and Medication Evaluations
appointments are not concurrent, the queue for Medication appointment has been
reduced from 8 weeks to 5 weeks; however, it can be expedited in a crisis. The queue
for Intensive Residential Treatment (IRT) is currently 90 days. There are limited
programs for women; currently for Short Teen Inpatient Residential Treatment
(STIRT) is the only option and there is a 5-week queue.
Rick presented his Weld County Jail Women Inmate Profile. Women occupy an
increasing number of county jail beds in Colorado at a rate greater than men and
above the national average. Locally, the average daily population of all inmates at the
Weld County Jail increased from 538 in 2008 to 604 in 2014. Women accounted for
62% of that increase. In real numbers, there was an average of 66 women in custody
during 2008. That increased to 107 in 2014. The corresponding increase of 41
women occurred during the same time the overall average daily jail population
increased by only 66. While the total number of offenders being supervised by the
local Probation Department increased nearly 12% from 2013 to 2014, women
supervised did not show a disproportionate increase and remained about 26% of all
offenders. Local Parole also reports no disproportionate change in women
supervised.
Rick further noted that the increase in booking is due to FTA warrants, but the
underlying charge is unknown, indicating that some of the women are repeat
offenders. Judge Hartmann commented on the instability of these women, that they
are homeless, unemployed and involved with DHS. Judge Meyer remarked that the
increase in the female population is apparent at the weekend Bond Hearings. Judge
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Quammen observed that the common regressions for Probation's Female Offender
Program were due to new law violations and illicit drug use. Jerry Green mentioned
that Probation is accepting more difficult cases based on the PSI assessment into the
program. Keith Coleman observed that he has noted an increase in opiate use by his
clients, specifically heroin.
3. Presentation—Jail Based Behavioral Services ('JBBS")—Weld County Sheriff's Office:
A. Matt Elbe, Clinical Director with the WCSO and Dawn Jones, Case Manager with
Behavioral Treatment Services (BTS)presented the Weld County Jail Based
Behavioral Health Services (JBBS) program. JBBS is state funded program through
the Office of Behavioral Health. "The JBBS program supports County Sheriffs in
providing screening, assessment and treatment for substance use disorders and co-
occurring substance use and mental health disorders to people who need such services
while they are in jail." The program embeds staff in the jail to initiate services to
extend upon release. The Weld County program was started July 1, 2013 with one
(1) mental health therapist position from NRBH and one (1) case manager position
from BTS. At this time,referrals come from jail staff for offenders who would meet
program eligibility (substance abuse disorder, co-occurring disorders, likely jail or
community sentence) or by inmate request. The JBBS team meets with offenders to
determine eligibility, gauging the offender's interest in the program by
acknowledging they have a problem and want treatment. There are several screening
tools administered to eligible offenders to deteiniine TBI, trauma, mental health and
substance abuse issues. An intake assessment is completed by NRBH mental health
therapists to register the offender as a client in their system. Jail based services
include individual and group psychotherapy from NRBH and case management for
life skills and transition planning from BTS. Once the offender is released from jail,
services are continued through NRBH and BTS in the community.
Outcome data is tracked through the JBBS state database. Offender engagement in
treatment is tracked at 1 month, 2 month, 6 month and 1 year milestones. For the FY
'13-'14, 67 assessments were completed, 62 offenders were identified as eligible with
55 admissions, 19 were females. Due to the lengthy wait list (50 offenders), the
model expanded in October 2014 to two (2) mental health therapist positions (NRBH)
and one (1) case manager position (BTS), all positions to split time between jail and
community. This has been successful and the wait list has been cut in half. This
continuity of care is designed to keep offenders engaged from the jail to the
community. Thus far for the FY '14-'15, 71 assessments were completed, 69
offenders were identified as eligible with 67 admissions. Once released into the
community, there are Recovery Support Services Funds for legal documents needed
(i.e. birth certificate),bus passes and survival back pack. Proposed model for FY '15-
'16, to increase to three (3) mental health therapist positions and two (2) case
manager positions. The JBBS benefits include (1) increased linkage to community
treatment; (2) more immediate access to community resources upon discharge from
jail; (3)reduce recidivism rates; and(4) enhanced collaboration, coordination and
communication between WCSO and community treatment entities.
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The outcomes are tracked in the JBBS state database. The key data points are
intakes; screenings with outcomes, demographics, therapy contacts, case management
contacts and offenders' treatment follow through. The FY '13-'14 outcomes were
depicted in a graph, for one (1)month, 33% in treatment, 25% not in treatment, 15%
status unknown, 2% new crime and 25% not applicable and by one (1) year, 14% in
treatment, 32%not in treatment, 14% status unknown, 4% new crime and 36% not
applicable. Thus far the FY '14-'15 outcomes were also denoted in a graph, showing
for the first month, 49% in treatment, 16% not in treatment, 5% status unknown, 9%
new crime and 21% not applicable and by six (6) month marker, 25% in treatment,
25% not in treatment, 17% status unknown, 0% new crime and 33% not applicable.
There was discussion around the length of time in jail with JBBS services prior to
release, ensuring the offender is ready for the community. On the pretrial side, the
release date is unknown; however, on the post-conviction side, the release date is
known. The possibility of participation in JBBS may be considered for bond
conditions; although, post-conviction would be ideal. It was recommended to set-up
parameters around length of time to be held in custody and then released with
supervision, such as Probation. Not eligible for the JBBS program are DOC
sentences. Matt Elbe stated he would follow up with other counties, to see if
parameters are set to target the ideal population. It was agreed that Matt and Dawn
would continue with their presentation of the JBBS program at the next CJAC
meeting.
4. Roundtable:
A. Judge Hartmann stated that there is an initiative on indiscriminatory shackling of
juveniles underway. A working group comprised of representatives from the District
Attorney's office, Public Defender's office and the WCSO are working towards
making recommendations for an administrative order. This is a national movement;
state legislation has died; however, chief judges agreed to act presumptively in their
jurisdictions. The primary focus is safety and security. Currently, looking at a
staging area and bringing one juvenile at a time into the courtroom. There was
discussion around possible alternatives, such as holding the hearings in the detention
center or holding the hearings by video.
B. Mike McCormick updated everyone on Senate Bill 97, which gives funds to North
Range's BASIC program. With more availability of funding from Medicaid, he is
looking to move the funding focus to specialty programs, such as Drug and Family
Court. This would increase staffing to increase wrap around services.
C. Judge Hartmann stated that two of the courtrooms in the Court House need lines
dropped for the use of video appearances, the estimated expense is $10,000.
Preliminary Hearings and Disposition Hearings will need to be in person; however,
Advisement Hearings and Settings can be done by video. It is likely this will save the
County from transporting at least 60 defendants per week. Commissioner Kirkmeyer
will follow up with a work session as Judge Hartmann has spoken with Toby Taylor,
from Buildings and Grounds, for a work order.
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With no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 1:36 p.m. The next CJAC meeting will
be Tuesday July 14, 2015 at 12:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Reviewed by,
Dianna Campbell Doug Erler
Pretrial Services Supervisor, Weld County Director, Weld County Justice Services
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