Is help available for a defendant’s drug addiction or mental illness?
If a defendant receives community supervision, drug treatment (either inpatient or outpatient) may be ordered as a condition of probation. A probationer also may be assigned to the Change Through Intervention (CTI) specialized drug caseload, which includes intensive supervision and treatment as well as quarterly meetings with the judge. A defendant also may request that his case be sent to the Star Program, Harris County’s drug court. Those with mental illness may be interviewed by the mental health specialist who is assigned to the court. Probationers who have mental illness may be assigned to a mental health probation officer, and, if eligible, may receive services from the New Start program or the Forensic Assertive Community Treatment Team (FACT).
