LUBBOCK — Local leaders and advocates in Lubbock County are examining whether a formal mental health diversion program could keep qualifying offenders out of jail and route them into treatment, officials told KCBD’s Investigates Team.
What officials are considering
Stakeholders are studying an Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) model — an approach other Texas counties have used where a civil court oversees outpatient mental health services for qualifying individuals as an alternative to criminal processing. Lubbock currently does not have a formal program of this type.
- Goal: Reduce the number of people with serious mental illness cycling through the criminal justice system.
- Mechanism: Court-ordered outpatient treatment overseen by civil judges, rather than incarceration.
- Local partners: County stakeholders, mental health providers and criminal justice officials, with input from entities such as StarCare Specialty Health System and the Texas Judicial Commission on Mental Health.
Context and changes at the state level
State lawmakers recently broadened detention standards for mental health emergencies. Senate Bill 1164 took effect in September and expanded circumstances in which officers may detain someone for a mental health emergency without a warrant. The bill and the AOT model are central to conversations about how Lubbock might better coordinate treatment and public safety.
| Item | Current status |
|---|---|
| AOT program in Lubbock | No formal program |
| State law (SB 1164) | Effective September (previous legislative session) |
Personal testimony highlights stakes
Brian Shannon, a Texas Tech law professor who serves on the Texas Judicial Commission on Mental Health and is a board member at StarCare, told investigators the issue is personal. He described his younger brother’s serious psychiatric illness in college and the symptom known as anosognosia, where a person lacks insight into their own condition and may refuse treatment.
“It is a common symptom of individuals who have bipolar or schizophrenia disorder... Without treatment, without medication, there is this lack of insight, and so it makes it difficult for the person to get help,” Shannon said.
Shannon described his family’s experience pursuing court-ordered mental health services and how medication and hospitalization ultimately helped his brother stabilize and live independently.
Implications for Lubbock and the region
Proponents say a diversion program could reduce arrests and jail time for people whose behavior stems from untreated serious mental illness, while connecting them to sustained care. Opponents in other jurisdictions have raised concerns about civil liberties, enforcement and funding. For Lubbock County, the question will be whether a locally tailored AOT program can balance public safety, individual rights and access to consistent behavioral health services.
County officials and mental health advocates will continue discussions on whether to adopt a formal program and how to implement it in the local justice and health systems.
