Felony Mental Health Court

Mission Statement

The mission of the Spokane County Behavioral Health Adult Felony Therapeutic Mental Health Court (FMHC) is to offer eligible offenders a highly structured and cost-effective pretrial release program that combines treatment, education, and intensive supervision to reduce the symptoms of mental illness and their impact on associated criminal activity.  
 

Background

The Spokane County Felony Mental Health Court (FMHC) program was created in 2013 to give offenders with mental illness the opportunity to enter treatment while preventing a felony on their record. Entering the voluntary FMHC program offers participants a chance to regain their life, mend their relationships, and become positive, contributing members of the community. Instead of jail or prison, participants will enter a court-supervised, structured treatment based program designed to help them manage their mental illness (with may include addressing chemical dependency) and make healthier choices. This unique opportunity is based on treating the whole person by addressing needs in all major life areas. Our program adheres to the national standards established for mental health courts (PDF).

We work as a team, so participants are not alone in their recovery. There will be occasions where other participants also struggling but provide encouragement and strength. The treatment team leverages the skills of many professionals to help guide and support a participant's recovery efforts. Please review the FMHC Participant Handbook (PDF) for a more detailed look at the program description and to answer any questions.
 
 

For More Information

If you have current felony charges pending and want to learn more about your eligibility, please contact the Public Defender, Alison McPeek at 509-477-4880. or by email.

If you have other questions or would like to learn more about how to support our success, please contact the Therapeutic Court Coordinator, Lindsay Lanham at 509-477-6355, or by email.