Date:
September 15, 2026 01
To: Board of Supervisors
Title
Sheriff - Revenue Agreement with the California Department of State Hospitals for Security for Early Access and Stabilization Services (Districts: All)
End
Overview
The California Department of State Hospitals (DSH) is responsible for restoring competency to individuals with serious mental illness who are found mentally incompetent to stand trial (IST) on felony charges, pursuant to California Penal Code section 1370. IST defendants cannot be tried or sentenced while mentally incompetent and are instead committed to a State hospital for care and treatment to restore competency to stand trial. There is a high demand for State hospital beds for substantive services to restore competency, which has created delays in admission to a State hospital for IST treatment.
On November 15, 2016 (2), the County of San Diego (County) Board of Supervisors (Board) approved a Jail-Based Competency Treatment (JBCT) Program to address delays in administering treatment. JBCT programs allow for competency to be restored while an IST defendant is in County jail. DSH and the County officially launched a 30-bed JBCT program at the San Diego Central Jail and began treatment of IST patients in February 2017. To address the continued IST treatment delays and to meet required treatment timelines, DSH implemented a supplemental program called Early Access and Stabilization Services (EASS) and contracted with Liberty Health Services, Inc. (Liberty), to provide EASS program services at County jails. On September 12, 2023 (3), the San Diego County Sheriff ‘s Office (Sheriff’s Office) was granted approval to provide security services for Liberty staff while they perform IST services on-site at County jails from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2026.
Today’s request seeks approval of a revenue agreement with Liberty for the Sheriff’s Office to provide continued security services for nine months from October 1, 2026 to ...
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