A program designed for helping people with mental illness who are involved in the criminal justice system.

Star Program Purpose

The purpose of the STAR program is to implement an Evidence Based treatment program that is proven effective in treating Seriously Mentally Ill (SMI) offenders and reducing their recidivism, while improving public safety. The STAR project involves a coordinated multi-disciplinary forensic team approach to the provision of supervised assessment, individualized treatment, rehabilitation, and support services to SMI offenders, who voluntarily participate in the program. This interdisciplinary coordination involves mental health, corrections, probation, STAR court, district attorney, public defender, conflict counsel, services providers, and community/family advocates.

ACT/CCT Treatment Model

The STAR team will be working with an Evidence-Based model known as Assertive Community Treatment (ACT). Due to Humboldt County’s small rural setting, the STAR program is designed to use the rural ACT organizational structure which we will call Comprehensive Community Treatment (CCT) program.

ACT/CCT is a service delivery model for providing comprehensive, intensive, and individualized community based and support to persons (offenders) with serious and persistent mental illness.

The following essential ACT services will be provided:

• Comprehensive assessment
• 24 hr/7 days a week Crisis assessment and intervention, including hospitalization
• Case Management
• Support services (i.e., housing, medical care, benefits, transportation)
• Intervention with support networks ( i.e., family, friends, landlords, neighbors)
• Substance abuse assessment and treatment
• Medication prescription, administration, and monitoring
• Individual supportive counseling and psychotherapy
• Employment/Rehabilitative support services
• Side by side assistance with daily activities
• Assertive outreach and engagement
• Community based services (at least 80% of service is spent in the community)
• Frequent service contacts (multiple contacts with client per week)
• Small caseload (Client/Provider ratio of 10:1)

Program Client Capacity

The STAR program will serve 25 offenders. There is no drop-out policy unless consent of client (clients receive over 12 month treatment)

STAR Program Staff

The core of the STAR CCT program is a multi-disciplinary team that provides integrated and comprehensive services directly to seriously mentally ill clients, wherever and whenever they are needed, such as in the community, court system, jail, hospitals and psychiatric facilities. The STAR team serves as the fixed point of responsibility for all the client’s care (from in-custody to post-custody).

The STAR Team

• MIOCR/STAR Project Director
• Program Manager
• Supervising Clinician
• Psychiatrist
• Psychiatric Nurse
• Mental Health Clinician
• Peer Specialist/Substance Abuse Specialist
• Case manger/ Personal Services Coordinator
• Program Assistant
• Housing coordination

Hours of Operation

STAR team members will provide treatment, rehabilitation and support seven days per week on a client-by-client basis and 24/7 crisis service availability.

Target Population

This program is indicated for adults with severe and persistent mental illnesses, which are psychiatric disorders that cause symptoms and impairments in basic mental and behavior processes. STAR clients may be voluntary or admitted under court commitment.

STAR Admission Criteria

1. Individuals that have been incarcerated in the Humboldt County Correctional Facility, on or after July 1, 2006, with psychiatric illnesses that are most persistent and severe, including the following psychiatric diagnosis from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, of the American Psychiatric Association (DSM IV):
• Schizophrenia
• Other psychotic disorders (e.g., schizoaffective disorder)
• Bipolar disorder
• Depressive disorders that significantly impact the inmate’s functioning


2. Individuals with significant functional impairments as demonstrated by:
• Inability to consistently perform the range of practical daily living tasks for basic adult functioning in the community or persistent or recurrent failure to perform daily living tasks except with significant support or assistance from others.
• Inability to be consistently employed at a self-sustaining level or inability to consistently carry out homemaker role
• Inability to maintain safe living situation


3. Individuals with the following problems, which are indicators of continuous high service needs:
• High use of acute psychiatric hospitals or psychiatric emergency services
• Intractable severe major symptoms (psychotic, suicidal)
• Coexisting substance use disorder of significant duration (>than 6 months)
• Repeated or recent criminal justice involvement
• Inability to meet basic survival needs or residing in substandard housing, homeless or imminent risk of becoming homeless
• Inability to participate in traditional office-based services

Ineligible Criteria

1. The participant does not meet the mental illness diagnosis as outlined in the admission criteria.
2. Public safety threat (includes crimes that require registration as sexual offender).
3. The participant is going to prison.
4. The participant who is not court ordered and refuses to participate.
5. The participant is not a resident of Humboldt County.

Excluded diagnosis

Delirium, Dementia and Amnestic and other Cognitive Disorders
Mental Disorders Due to a General Medical Condition
Regional Center eligible Developmental Disabilities
Anti-Social Personality Disorder

Referral To Program

A participant can be referred by Mental Health-Jail services, other Health & Human Service Departments, court system, probation, or the participant may refer themselves.

Inmate/Client referral, screening, and selection begins: April 1, 2007