CHICAGO– A competency restoration program in the District of Columbia is helping defendants with mental illness become fit to stand trial, while saving the district money. The program could serve as a model for other jurisdictions that want to improve the competency of unfit defendants, Dr. Nicole R. Johnson, director of outpatient forensic service at the district’s Department of Behavioral Health said in an interview.
The District of Columbia’s Outpatient Competency Restoration Program (OCRP) started in 2009 and receives court-ordered referrals for individuals to participate in the program. The program works to restore defendants’ competency through question and answer sessions, games, and educational lessons, among other methods, Dr. Johnson reported at the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law meeting. Some participants have mental illness and about a third have cognitive or neurologic limitations, she said. The majority of those referred receive mental health services from separate district agencies. If such needs are being not being met, OCRP administrators refer them to a clinic for treatment.
Of 170 individuals enrolled in the OCRP from 2009 to 2013, 54 were deemed competent to stand trial after completion, said Dr. Johnson, who oversees the program.
In an interview at the meeting, Dr. Johnson discussed how much money the program has saved the district and whether other jurisdictions can feasibly start similar programs.
On Twitter @legal_med