The Denver County Court announced on July 24 that it’s opening a new competency support docket. The goal of this specialty docket, according to the press release, is to connect defendants with competency concerns to mental-health support services so they can receive the help they need while allowing the legal proceedings to continue as quickly as possible.
The press release stated the expectation from the new docket is an increase in public safety and a decrease in recidivism rates, based on the experience of other courts with similar programs.
“Competency cases are resource and time intensive and often involve several separate agencies,” said Denver County Court Presiding Judge Kerri Lombardi in a press release. “By having these cases heard and supported by a dedicated team that is fluent in competency-related matters, we expect to shorten the time it takes to stabilize defendants, keep these cases moving forward and [improve] public safety.”
“This approach supports equitable and procedural justice because all individuals will now have the same opportunities to connect with programs, resources, services, and specialized expertise when competency is raised or is in question,” Lombardi added. “I want to commend Judge Kelly Cherry for her efforts to launch the Competency Support Docket and thank her for presiding over these cases.”
There are requirements that must be met for a person to be eligible for the docket, according to the press release. The person must be charged with a misdemeanor offense in the city and county of Denver and have their competency to proceed in question.
Following that, the person will be assessed by Denver Health using a screen to determine the likelihood of being found incompetent to proceed. If a person meets all of these eligibility criteria, they will have their cases reviewed in the docket for further case proceedings.
The docket team will then look at all possible case avenues for people to be diverted to treatment and support services outside of the formal legal competency process as appropriate.
The docket is held in Courtroom 3G of the Lindsey-Flanigan Courthouse with Judge Kelly Cherry presiding, and is staffed by stakeholders who have expertise in competency-related guidance, resources and case proceedings.
This specialty court is a project between the Denver County Court, the Denver District Attorney’s Office, the Colorado Public Defender’s Office, Denver Health, Bridges of Colorado, Servicios de la Raza, Denver FIRST, Second Chance Center, WellPower, the Office of Civil and Forensic Mental Health and other service and treatment providers.