INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The Indian River Board of County Commissioners Tuesday voted 4-1 to approve $100,000 to fund a nine-month pilot mental health court program.
Urged by every law enforcement agency in the county, plus the judges who often see defendants in their courtrooms who need mental health services, the Board agreed to allocate part of the $125,000 left unspent in the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year ending Sept. 30 toward mental health services for the court system.
Commissioner Bob Solari voted against the measure, saying that while he was in favor of the concept of a mental health court, he had not yet seen adequate financial data or a solid plan for what the expenses would be and where the County would get the money on a recurring basis.
“This is the type of item that I would very much like to support, but the backup is not what I’d like,” Solari said, pointing out that the mental health court idea has been discussed for at least five years and saying he’s not sure what the rush is.
“I believe if we’re going to do something for the good of the community, it’s worth doing correctly,” he said.
Commissioner Peter O’Bryan said he puts faith in the overwhelming support of the mental health court program by not only the Sheriff and the judges, but also Vero Beach Police Chief David Currey, Fellsmere Police Chief Keith Touchberry and Sebastian Police Chief Michelle Morris.
“Sometimes we have to listen to the experts in front of us,” O’Bryan said. “When the entire law enforcement and judicial come before us and say this is a critical need, I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.”
Commissioners Tim Zorc and Joe Flescher agreed with Solari that the Board had not yet been provided with a complete plan for the program, but also said they were willing to support the pilot period of nine months, with the expectation of receiving more detailed data during the next budget process.
“I did anticipate additional backup earlier on . . . but I’m not going to let that get in the way,” Flescher said. “If we can reduce recidivism and do something that’s right for the individual, even though they’ve done wrong, we don’t have to do wrong.”
Judge Cynthia Cox said she would be responsible for quarterly reports on the activities and expenses of the new mental health court.
Calling for a vote, Chairman Wesley Davis said, “We could really have paralysis by analysis and we need to move forward.”
Cox said she will work with all the agencies that are currently dealing with the intersection of criminal activity and mental health issues to get things started.
