Mental Health Diversion in OC Courts: How to Qualify

If you have a qualified mental health disorder, you may be able to avoid jail time through a mental health diversion. However, there are many important rules that affect whether you can qualify for this program or not. Because of this, you should always consult with a professional criminal attorney to determine the best course of action for your legal case.

In order to qualify for mental health diversion in Orange County, you must be diagnosed with a mental health condition from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) that would have had a significant impact on the crime you committed. Under Orange County’s procedural rules about its mental diversion program and Penal Code 1001.36, defendants can receive a pretrial diversion for misdemeanor and felony offenses. However, there are specific misdemeanors and felonies that are excluded from the diversion program.

Once someone is accepted to mental health diversion in California, the court will order regular reports. A mental health provider will create the reports to let the court, the defense, and the prosecutor know about the status of the defendant’s treatment.

To get the diversion, the defendant must plead not guilty. Additionally, they must waive their right to a speedy trial. If everything is completed properly, the defendant’s charges will be dismissed at the end of the diversion period.

Under Penal Code 1001.36(f)(c)(i)(ii) , diversion can’t take longer than two years for a felony. For a misdemeanor, the maximum diversion length is one year.

To qualify for a pretrial diversion program in California, a few things must be true.

• The defendant must be diagnosed with a condition from the most recent version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.
• The mental illness must have been a major factor affecting the defendant’s crime.
• To take part in a California diversion program, a mental health expert must agree that the defendant’s symptoms could respond well to treatment.
• The defendant must waive their right to a speedy trial and agree to taking part in the diversion program.
• The defendant agrees to take part in their treatment.
• Public safety isn’t at risk from the defendant.
• There is a treatment option available that the defendant can use.

Besides mental health diversion programs, there is a new option available in Orange County and California. Treatment-mandated felonies are available if you are getting charged with your third drug offense and it’s non-violent.

With a treatment-mandated felony, you are sent to a drug rehab or a mental health treatment facility instead of prison. If you are able to successfully complete your treatment program, the felony is removed from your record. However, you may have to spend three years in prison if you are unable to complete your treatment program.

The new option for treatment-mandated felonies is was created by Proposition 36. While treatment-mandated felonies can benefit some defendants, many other provisions in Proposition 36 lead to harsher prison sentences. For example, there are sentencing enhancements when someone commits a drug crime with a weapon.

It’s a good idea to start out by talking to your attorney about getting a pretrial diversion. If this option isn’t available, you may qualify for a treatment-mandated felony instead. However, you should always bring up your immigration status and other legal cases with your attorney because pleading guilty or simply admitting guilt during the diversion process can lead to being deported if you aren’t here legally.

In order to take part in a mental health diversion program, your attorney must file a motion to divert. If you think that you may qualify for a diversion program or a treatment-mandated felony, reach out to our team of skilled attorneys to learn more about your options.