Justice

Jennifer on the Issue:

We’ve all seen the ways in which diminished funding for mental health care leaves our community members behind; people who need psychiatric treatment are neglected on the street or incarcerated rather than offered community-based preventative care. In addition to being far more expensive, this has led to extended and unconstitutional stays in county jail for some of our most vulnerable residents. 

As a County Supervisor, I will advocate for increasing funds for community-based care, to ensure our community has access to compassionate, preventative, and high-quality mental health services to give people the freedom to heal while providing for families and loved ones at home.

More than half the calls for service that come into our emergency dispatch are calls that do not require a police response. By allowing trained professionals to respond to housing and mental health crisis related service calls, we free up the police to do the job they are trained to do, preventing and responding to violent and dangerous crimes.