Cook County Juvenile Probation DepartmentSecond Chance Act Reentry Demonstration Program

The Second Chance Act of 2007 (Pub. L. 110-199) provides a comprehensive response to the increasing number of people who are released from prison and jail and returning to communities, including resources to address the myriad needs of these offenders to achieve a successful return to their communities. Section 201 of the Second Chance Act authorizes the Second Chance Act Reentry Demonstration Program Targeting Offenders with Co-occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders Program, which is designed to provide treatment and recovery support services to offenders during incarceration and after their return to the community. This section specifically addresses the treatment needs of offenders who have substance abuse disorders and authorizes grants to states, units of local government, territories, and Indian tribes to improve the provision of drug treatment to offenders in prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities during the period of incarceration and through the completion of parole or other court supervision after release into the community.

The term co-occurring disorders (COD) refers to co-occurring substance-related and mental disorders. Clients said to have COD have one or more substance-related disorders as well as one or more mental disorders. At the individual level, COD exist when at least one disorder of each type can be established independent of the other and is not simply a cluster of symptoms resulting from [a single] disorder. Projects will implement or expand offender treatment programs for re-entering offenders with co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders. Programs should require urinalysis and/or other proven reliable forms of drug and alcohol testing for program participants, including both periodic and random testing, and for former participants while they remain in the custody, or under community supervision, of the state, local, or tribal government.

The Circuit Court of Cook County, Juvenile Probation and Court Services was awarded a Second Chance Act Reentry Demonstration Program: Targeting Offenders with Co-occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders (Category 5) Award in the amount of $574,335.00. The circuit court plans to establish a comprehensive, integrated case management and service delivery system for adjudicated youth currently under the supervision of the Cook County Juvenile Probation Department (CCJPD) who are detained in the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (CCJTDC) and will be transitioned back to the community. This system innovation will allow the CCJPD and CCJTDC to, collaboratively, identify and prioritize needed services to high-risk and needy youths, specifically those with serious mental health and substance use problems as co-occurring disorders.

CA/NCF