Chief Justice highlights Floyd County courts' work in mental health

Andrew Harp, The Evening News and the Tribune, Jeffersonville, Ind.
·2 min read

Jan. 11—FLOYD COUNTY — The Floyd County Justice Reinvestment Advisory Board was highlighted during the annual State of the Judiciary address to the governor and joint session of the Indiana General Assembly.

Indiana Chief Justice Loretta H. Rush discussed a number of counties in the state and their judiciaries on Wednesday in her address titled, "Indiana Courts' Return on Investment," and the first was Floyd.

Rush specifically talked about efforts led by Judge Carrie Stiller and the advisory board.

"They are fulfilling the constitutional imperative that justice be tempered with mercy and based on principles of reformation," Rush said.

She said that after the 2022 statewide Mental Health Summit in Indianapolis, Stiller and her team left the summit "inspired and committed to maintaining the momentum from that day's conversations."

Rush relayed a story Stiller had told about her watching from the courthouse inmates being released from the jail and standing on the street looking a ride and how she was worried about them being taken advantage of.

"She could see the desperation in their faces and the likelihood of stepping right back into that cycle of drugs, arrest and jail," she said.

Rush said Stiller then began meeting reguarly with the county sheriff, prosecutor, public defenders, judges, probation officers and treatment providers.

She said they organized their own mental health summit this past September, invited community members and service providers, and opened dialogue with local leadership to developed a plan. Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch was the keynote speaker.

"The momentum in Floyd County has become unstoppable," Rush said.

She said the Floyd County Council and Commissioners agreed to leverage opioid settlement money to get matching state grants from the Division of Mental Health and Addiction. They also hired a full-time jail transition coordinator to assist the released inmates to get treatment.

"Judge stiller says it best, 'We are changing lives by reducing the barriers to a better life, a sober life,'" Rush said.