MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2020 Regular Session
To: Judiciary, Division A
By: Senator(s) Chassaniol, Blackwell, Younger, Jackson (15th), Jackson (32nd)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 9-23-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE DEFINITIONS CONCERNING INTERVENTION COURTS; TO AMEND SECTION 9-23-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE INTERVENTION COURT CERTIFICATION AND RECERTIFICATION PROCESS; TO AMEND SECTION 9-23-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE COLLECTION OF DATA BY THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF COURTS ON PARTICIPANTS IN INTERVENTION PROGRAMS TO ENSURE THAT INTERVENTION PROGRAMS ARE FOLLOWING BEST PRACTICES AND USING EVIDENCE- OR RESEARCH-BASED METHODS; TO AMEND SECTION 9-23-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO MAKE A TECHNICAL CORRECTION AND FOR PURPOSES OF FURTHER AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 9-23-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
9-23-5. For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
(a) "Chemical" tests means the analysis of an individual's: (i) blood, (ii) breath, (iii) hair, (iv) sweat, (v) saliva, (vi) urine, or (vii) other bodily substance to determine the presence of alcohol or a controlled substance.
(b) "Crime of violence" means an offense listed in Section 97-3-2.
(c) "Intervention court" means a drug court, mental health court, veterans court or problem-solving court that utilizes an immediate and highly structured intervention process for eligible defendants or juveniles that brings together mental health professionals, substance abuse professionals, local social programs and intensive judicial monitoring.
(d) "Evidence-based * * * program" * * * and "research-based
program" have the meanings as those terms are defined in Section 27-103-159.
(e) "Risk and needs assessment" means the use of an actuarial assessment tool validated on a Mississippi corrections population to determine a person's risk to reoffend and the characteristics that, if addressed, reduce the risk to reoffend.
SECTION 2. Section 9-23-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
9-23-9. (1) The State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee is established to develop and periodically update proposed statewide evaluation plans and models for monitoring all critical aspects of intervention courts. The committee must provide the proposed evaluation plans to the Chief Justice and the Administrative Office of Courts. The committee shall be chaired by the Director of the Administrative Office of Courts or a designee of the director and shall consist of eleven (11) members all of whom shall be appointed by the Supreme Court. The members shall be broadly representative of the courts, mental health, veterans affairs, law enforcement, corrections, criminal defense bar, prosecutors association, juvenile justice, child protective services and substance abuse treatment communities.
(2) The State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee may also make recommendations to the Chief Justice, the Director of the Administrative Office of Courts and state officials concerning improvements to intervention court policies and procedures including the intervention court certification process. The committee may make suggestions as to the criteria for eligibility, and other procedural and substantive guidelines for intervention court operation.
(3) The State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee shall act as arbiter of disputes arising out of the operation of intervention courts established under this chapter and make recommendations to improve the intervention courts; it shall also make recommendations to the Supreme Court necessary and incident to compliance with established rules.
(4) The State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee shall establish through rules and regulations a viable and fiscally responsible plan to expand the number of adult and juvenile intervention court programs operating in Mississippi. These rules and regulations shall include plans to increase participation in existing and future programs while maintaining their voluntary nature.
(5) The State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee shall receive and review the monthly reports submitted to the Administrative Office of Courts by each certified intervention court and provide comments and make recommendations, as necessary, to the Chief Justice and the Director of the Administrative Office of Courts.
(6) The State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee shall promulgate administrative best practices for all intervention courts and shall require compliance with those best practices for any certification or recertification under Section 9-23-11 on or after July 1, 2021.
(7) An intervention court not certified under Section 9-23-11 when required is barred from expending public funds.
SECTION 3. Section 9-23-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
9-23-11. (1) The Administrative Office of
Courts shall establish, implement and operate a uniform certification process
for all intervention courts * * * designed to adjudicate
criminal actions involving an identified classification of criminal defendant
to ensure funding for intervention courts supports effective and proven
practices that reduce recidivism and substance dependency among * * * participants.
(2) The Administrative Office of Courts shall establish a certification process that ensures any new or existing intervention court meets minimum standards for intervention court operation.
(a) These standards shall include, but are not limited to:
(i)
The use of evidence-based * * * or research-based programs, including, but
not limited to, the use of a valid and reliable risk and needs assessment tool
to identify participants and deliver appropriate interventions;
(ii) Targeting medium to high-risk offenders for participation;
(iii)
The use of current, evidence-based * * * or research-based programs proven to
reduce dependency on drugs or alcohol, or both;
(iv) Frequent testing for alcohol or drugs;
(v) Coordinated strategy between all intervention court program personnel involving the use of graduated clinical interventions;
(vi)
Ongoing judicial interaction with each participant; * * *
(vii)
Monitoring and evaluation of intervention court program implementation and
outcomes through data collection and reporting * * *; and
(viii) The use of administrative best practices promulgated by the State Intervention Courts Advisory Committee.
(b) Intervention court certification applications shall include:
(i) A description of the need for the intervention court;
(ii) The targeted population for the intervention court;
(iii) The eligibility criteria for intervention court participants;
(iv) A description of the process for identifying appropriate participants including the use of a risk and needs assessment and a clinical assessment;
(v)
A description of the intervention court intervention components, including
anticipated budget * * *, implementation plan, administrative best practices
policies, and a list of the evidence-based or research-based programs to be
implemented;
(vi) The data collection plan which shall include collecting the following data:
1. Total number of participants;
2. Total number of successful participants;
3. Total number of unsuccessful participants and the reason why each participant did not complete the program;
4. Total number of participants who were arrested for a new criminal offense while in the intervention court program;
5. Total number of participants who were convicted of a new felony or misdemeanor offense while in the intervention court program;
6. Total number of participants who committed at least one (1) violation while in the intervention court program and the resulting sanction(s);
7.
Results of the initial risk and needs assessment or other clinical assessment
conducted on each participant; * * *
8.
Total number of applications for screening by race, gender, offenses charged,
indigence and, if not accepted, the reason for nonacceptance; * * *
9. Identification of any program participant who, upon completion of an intervention program, was arrested for a new criminal offense; and
* * *10. Any other data or information as
required by the Administrative Office of Courts.
(c) Every intervention court shall be certified under the following schedule:
(i)
An intervention court application submitted after July 1, 2014, shall require
certification of the intervention court based on the proposed * * * intervention court plan.
(ii) An intervention court initially established and certified after July 1, 2014, shall be recertified after its second year of funded operation on a time frame consistent with the other certified courts of its type.
(iii)
A certified adult felony intervention court in existence on December 31, 2018,
must submit a recertification petition by July 1, 2019, and be recertified
under the requirements of this section on or before December 31, 2019; after
the recertification, all certified adult felony intervention courts must submit
a recertification petition every two (2) years to the Administrative Office of
Courts. The recertification process must be completed by December 31 * * * of every odd calendar year.
(iv)
A certified youth, family, misdemeanor or chancery intervention court in
existence on December 31, 2018, must submit a recertification petition by July * * * 1, 2020, and be recertified under the
requirements of this section by December 31, 2020. After the recertification,
all certified youth, family, misdemeanor and chancery intervention courts must
submit a recertification petition every two (2) years to the Administrative
Office of Courts. The recertification process must be completed by December 31 * * * of every even calendar year.
(3)
All certified intervention courts shall measure successful completion of the * * * intervention court based on those
participants who complete the program without a new criminal conviction.
(4) (a) All certified drug courts must collect and submit to the Administrative Office of Courts each month, the following data:
(i) Total number of participants at the beginning of the month;
(ii) Total number of participants at the end of the month;
(iii) Total number of participants who began the program in the month;
(iv) Total number of participants who successfully completed the intervention court in the month;
(v) Total number of participants who left the program in the month;
(vi) Total number of participants who were arrested for a new criminal offense while in the intervention court program in the month;
(vii) Total number of participants who were convicted for a new criminal arrest while in the intervention court program in the month; and
(viii) Total number of participants who committed at least one (1) violation while in the intervention court program and any resulting sanction(s).
(b) By August 1, 2015, and each year thereafter, the Administrative Office of Courts shall report to the PEER Committee the information in subsection (4)(a) of this section in a sortable, electronic format.
(5) All certified intervention courts may individually establish rules and may make special orders and rules as necessary that do not conflict with the rules promulgated by the Supreme Court or the Administrative Office of Courts.
(6) A certified intervention court may appoint the full- or part-time employees it deems necessary for the work of the intervention court and shall fix the compensation of those employees. Such employees shall serve at the will and pleasure of the judge or the judge's designee.
(7) The Administrative Office of Courts shall promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the certification and re-certification process, including, but not limited to, requiring third-party providers under contract to provide services that comport with evidence-based or research-based programs, and to make any other policies not inconsistent with this section to carry out this process.
(8) A certified intervention court established under this chapter is subject to the regulatory powers of the Administrative Office of Courts as set forth in Section 9-23-17.
SECTION 4. Section 9-23-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
9-23-13. (1) An intervention
court's alcohol and drug intervention component shall provide * * * to
eligible individuals, either directly or through referrals, a range of
necessary court intervention services, including, but not limited to, the
following:
(a) Screening using a valid and reliable assessment tool effective for identifying alcohol and drug dependent persons for eligibility and appropriate services;
(b) Clinical assessment; for a DUI offense, if the person has two (2) or more DUI convictions, the court shall order the person to undergo an assessment that uses a standardized evidence-based instrument performed by a physician to determine whether the person has a diagnosis for alcohol and/or drug dependence and would likely benefit from a court-approved medication-assisted treatment indicated and approved for the treatment of alcohol and/or drug dependence by the United States Food and Drug Administration, as specified in the most recent Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association. Upon considering the results of the assessment, the court may refer the person to a rehabilitative program that offers one or more forms of court-approved medications that are approved for the treatment of alcohol and/or drug dependence by the United States Food and Drug Administration;
(c) Education;
(d) Referral;
(e) Service coordination and case management; and
(f) Counseling and rehabilitative care.
(2) Any inpatient treatment or inpatient detoxification program ordered by the court shall be certified by the Department of Mental Health, other appropriate state agency or the equivalent agency of another state.
(3) All intervention courts shall make available the option for participants to use court-approved medication-assisted treatment while participating in the programs of the court in accordance with the recommendations of the National Drug Court Institute.
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2020.