Over 6,000 people have participated in mental health courts across Illinois over the past two decades, but nearly two million Illinoisans—nearly 15% of the state’s population—live in counties without access to these diversion programs, revealing both the promise and limitations of a criminal justice reform model that has expanded without consistent oversight.
Illinois began operating mental health courts in the early 2000s, with lawmakers authorizing them statewide through the 2008 Mental Health Court Treatment Act. The state now has 31 certified mental health courts, which aim to divert individuals with mental illness from incarceration into community-based treatment and supervision. According to the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts, since 2017, 860 people have graduated from these programs while 763 failed to do so—a graduation rate slightly lower than the 57% national average. Illinois prisons incarcerate approximately 30,000 people annually at an estimated cost of $1.5 billion, with nearly half having a history of mental illness. One Illinois program estimates it has saved the state nearly half a billion dollars by avoiding incarceration costs over the past 15 years, with $85 million expected to be saved this fiscal year. More broadly, the Adult Redeploy Illinois initiative, established through the 2009 Illinois Crime Reduction Act, served nearly 3,000 people last year across approximately 60 diversion programs (about 80% problem-solving courts), with costs averaging a little over $4,000 per participant compared to nearly $53,000 annually for incarceration.
Research supporting the courts remains limited. A 2015 Loyola University Chicago study concluded whether mental health courts work is “a somewhat tentative ‘yes,’” while a 2020 literature review found they “generally show positive results” but “lack definitive evidence of their effectiveness.” Critics note the courts can coerce treatment, extend justice system involvement, and distract from broader mental health system reforms. Champaign County, the most populous county without a mental health court, shut down its program in 2013 due to disagreements between the state’s attorney and overseeing judge; a 2019 survey showed one in five county residents reported mental illness—the highest percentage in Illinois.
Program success depends heavily on access to housing, transportation, and treatment—resources many participants lack. Most rely on Medicaid and similar state benefits. While the Trump administration voiced support for mental health court expansion, it simultaneously cut social services these programs depend upon, with as many as 400,000 Illinois residents estimated at risk of losing Medicaid coverage. The state is building a public dashboard to share data on problem-solving courts, though courts remain otherwise exempt from public-records requests.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.pjstar.com/story/news/courts/2026/06/05/illinois-launched-mental-health-courts-to-break-the-prison-cycle/90392195007/