Advancing Equity at the Intersection of Race, Mental Illness, and Criminal Justice Involvement

This book is designed for every attorney who handles criminal cases, regardless of experience with cases involving people who have mental illness or with social justice topics. The concepts in the book are deep enough to provide new insights to those well versed in topics covered, while simple enough that novices can walk away with immediately usable techniques and a conceptual framework for incorporating equitable lawyering into their practice. Finally, a list of tools and resources follows each chapter to support further learning and to address cases at hand. Following the theme of equity, all tools and resources listed are accessible to all attorneys, regardless of financial and resources availability.

Table of Contents

Part I: Foundations

• Scoping the Problem
• Getting Grounded: Foundational Practice Tips for Recognizing Mental Illness Stigma

• Part II: How Criminal Justice Professionals Can Help Advance Equity

• Ethical Pathways to Advocacy
• Establishing Lawyering Tools for Advance Equity

Part III: Equity on Both Sides of the Adversarial System

• The Role of Prosecutors in Advancing Equity
• The Role of Defense Attorneys in Advancing Equity

Part IV: Advancing Equity Across the Criminal Justice Continuum

• Intent Criminal Justice Involvement and Pre-Adjudication
• Post-Adjudication and the Aftermath of Criminal Justice Involvement
• Special Considerations for Witnesses and Survivors of Crime

Part V: Moving from Theory to Action

• Navigating Authorities to Advance Equity