Mental Health & Criminal Justice

Strategic Priorities

Mental Health & Criminal Justice Roundtable

Community leaders in Nacogdoches County identified a persistent and urgent concern: people experiencing mental health challenges too often end up involved in the criminal justice system—not because that system is the most appropriate place for care, but because it is often the most available pathway when other supports are limited or difficult to access.  

Better Together Nacogdoches has been working alongside partners since 2023 to respond to this reality. This work is grounded in a broader strategic priority: increasing access to and the utility of wellness resources for underserved populations, with particular focus on individuals involved in the criminal justice system based on community-identified gaps in services.  

At the center of this effort is a cross-sector Mental Health Crisis Committee made up of partners from mental health services, law enforcement, courts, emergency response, and community organizations. Better Together serves as a backbone organization for this work—helping convene partners, support coordination, and maintain focus on shared, community-driven solutions.

The goal is not to assign blame to any one system, but to strengthen the way systems work together so that people are more likely to receive appropriate support at the right time.

Listening to the system

Early in the process, Better Together facilitated a series of stakeholder conversations with professionals and community partners across sectors. These conversations included mental health providers, law enforcement, emergency responders, court systems, and community-based organizations.

Across these discussions, participants identified key barriers in current response pathways, along with opportunities to improve coordination and expand appropriate options for care and support.

Turning insight into shared priorities

Building on what was learned, stakeholders were invited to review and prioritize potential solutions that emerged from these conversations. This step helped move from broad community input to a clearer set of shared, actionable priorities grounded in real-world experience.

Building coordinated solutions

Those priorities now inform an ongoing cross-sector roundtable that meets regularly to develop and implement a shared action plan. Better Together supports this effort by strengthening coordination between criminal justice, mental health, and community-based services and by helping keep the focus on practical, collaborative solutions.  

Current and emerging priorities include efforts to improve system coordination, expand access to appropriate services, support the development of a Mental Health Court in partnership with county stakeholders, and identify strategies that reduce recidivism while improving long-term wellbeing outcomes.

Ongoing work

The Mental Health & Criminal Justice Roundtable continues to meet quarterly, bringing together key decision-makers and partners to strengthen communication, align efforts, and implement shared strategies. Participants in these Roundtable meetings generate and actively work on an Action Plan, which breaks down big ideas into smaller actionable items. In this way, we ensure constant progress and forward momentum.

This work reflects a long-term commitment to building stronger systems of care and response in Nacogdoches County—so that individuals experiencing mental health challenges are more likely to receive the right support, and communities are better equipped to respond with coordination, dignity, and effectiveness.

What this means in practice

In practice, this work is about recognizing something many communities quietly experience: when someone is in mental health crisis, the systems available to respond are not always designed for that situation.  

Without enough crisis stabilization options, outpatient supports, or coordinated response pathways, situations that begin as health-related can sometimes end up being handled through law enforcement or jail settings—not because that is ideal, but because it is what is available in the moment.

This creates strain on individuals, families, first responders, and the justice system itself. It can also mean that people do not receive the kind of care that would be most helpful for recovery and long-term stability.  The goal of this work is not to place responsibility on any one system or group. Instead, it is to strengthen coordination across existing partners and build clearer pathways so that people are more likely to receive appropriate support—whether that is clinical care, crisis response, or other community-based resources.  

Over time, this kind of collaboration helps communities respond more effectively, reduce unnecessary justice system involvement, and improve outcomes for individuals and families.

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Mental Health & Criminal Justice Roundtable

A collaborative space for organizations working to improve systems and outcomes at the intersection of mental health and criminal justice. The Roundtable meets quarterly and generates an ongoing shared Action Plan.

Strategic Priorities