County reports faster linkages for people with mental illness under arraignment pilot but warns budget cuts could halt the program

County and court staff told the Public Safety and Justice Committee that the Mental Health Arraignment Calendar pilot has shortened timelines for people with serious mental illness and sped access to treatment and resolutions.

Brandon Cabrera, who supervises the D.A.’s mental health programs unit, said that the county’s arraignment calendar — a once‑weekly collaborative docket — allowed agencies to confer, prepare release planning, and connect people to services earlier in the case. Staff reported that over 24 afternoon sessions from August 2025 to February 2026 the calendar served 93 individual clients and processed 181 dockets; for competency‑related matters the team served 49 clients and reported faster dispositions after competency findings, typically within 30 days.

Presenters and the public defender emphasized the pilot’s early‑intervention goals and the ‘‘warm handoff’’ to treatment and reentry partners. Supervisors and a judge praised the collaborative model and its reduced incarceration times but cautioned that proposed budget cuts could eliminate the pilot. A judge warned that, at current proposed cut levels, the county might have to stop the pilot and other mental‑health and drug treatment court operations because staff would need to be redeployed to prosecute serious violent crime.

Why it matters: The pilot offers a model to reduce delays in the criminal legal process for people with serious mental illness and to improve linkage to behavioral‑health care. Officials urged the board to consider preserving some level of the program if budget constraints force reductions.

The committee voted to receive the report; staff and supervisors agreed to continue discussions about preserving the pilot as budgets are finalized.