N.H. Rev. Stat. § 490-H:2 — NH Code / Title LI / Chapter 490-H / Section 2
490-H:2 Implementation of Mental Health Courts.
Status: in_force

I. Any superior or circuit court may establish one or more mental health courts under which the courts monitor offenders with mental illnesses for compliance with individual services to change behavior which would otherwise result in criminal conduct. In this chapter "mental health court" means a judicial intervention process that incorporates the following elements: (a) Planning and administration guided by a broad-based group of stakeholders representing the community, criminal justice, mental health, substance abuse treatment, and related systems; (b) A target population is established that takes into account eligibility criteria that addresses public safety and considers a community's treatment capacity, in addition to the availability of alternatives to pretrial detention for defendants with mental illnesses. The eligibility criteria shall also take into account the relationship between mental illness and a defendant's offenses, while allowing the individual circumstances of each case to be considered; (c) Participants are identified, referred, and accepted into mental health court and linked to community based service providers as quickly as possible; (d) The terms of participation are clear, promote public safety, facilitate the defendant's engagement in treatment, are individualized to correspond to the level of risk that the defendant presents to the community, and provide for positive legal outcomes for those individuals who successfully complete the program; (e) Informed choice occurs, meaning that defendants fully understand the program requirements before agreeing to participate in a mental health court. Defendants are provided legal counsel to inform them regarding this decision and subsequent decisions about program involvement. Procedures exist in the mental health court to address, in a timely fashion, concerns about a defendant's competency whenever they arise; (f) The mental health courts connect participants to available comprehensive and individualized treatment supports and services in the community. They strive to use and increase the availability of treatment and services that are evidence-based; (g) Health and legal information is shared in a way that protects potential participants' confidentiality rights and their constitutional rights as defendants. Information gathered as part of the participants' court-ordered treatment program or services are safeguarded in the event that participations are returned to traditional court processing; (h) Criminal justice staff, mental health staff and services, and treatment providers receive special, ongoing training and help mental health court participants achieve treatment and criminal justice goals by regularly reviewing and revising the court process; (i) Criminal justice and mental health staff collaboratively monitor participants' adherence to court conditions, offer individualized graduated incentives and sanctions, and modify treatment as necessary to promote public safety and participants' recovery; and (j) Data is collected and analyzed to demonstrate the impact of the mental health court, its performance is assessed periodically and procedures are modified accordingly, court processes are institutionalized, and support for the court in the community is cultivated and expanded. II. Upon successful completion of a program recommended by the mental health court, an offender's case may be disposed of by the judge in the manner prescribed by the agreement and by the applicable policies and procedures adopted by the mental health court. This may include, but is not limited to, withholding criminal charges or dismissal of charges. III. A person sentenced by a mental health court may, at least one year after successful completion of all programs and conditions imposed by the mental health court, petition for annulment of the charges, arrest, conviction, and sentence that relate to such person's entry into the mental health court. IV. The mental health court may convene a local committee made up of community members who can provide support for the mental health court.