Attorneys Elizabeth Duggan and Thomas Zapata of Cofer & Connelly, PLLC recently sat down to talk about a part of criminal defense work related to the role of a client's mental health. As defense attorneys, much of our time is spent reading probable cause affidavits, reviewing body camera footage, and combing through the evidence that makes up a criminal defense case. But sometimes, once we truly get to know a client, something comes to light that the discovery alone could never show us.
When Something About the Case Doesn't Add Up
One client came to us with several pending charges, including assault causing bodily injury and aggravated assault, all connected to a family violence situation. At first, our focus was on the allegations themselves and the abusive situation she was living in, including what steps we could take to help protect her moving forward. But once we sat down with her and reviewed the discovery together, certain things made us start asking questions about whether an underlying mental health issue might also be playing a role.
It wasn't any single detail in a police report that tipped us off. It was looking at her as a whole person, with an open mind toward other influences that might be shaping what happened.
That shift changed the way we approached her case. Instead of asking only, "How do we get this case resolved," the question became, "How can we help you as a person?" We aren't mental health professionals, and diagnosing a client is never our role. But recognizing when a question needs to be asked, and helping a client connect with the right professional, can be. In this case, she already had an established mental health provider, but she hadn't mentioned it to us. She didn't realize that information could matter to her criminal case. Once we understood the complete picture, it opened up a path toward resolving her case that we wouldn't have found otherwise.
"I Don't Remember Any of It"
In a different case, a client's behavior on the day of the alleged incident was completely out of character from his normal demeanor. It was erratic and irrational, and after we showed him video of what had happened, he honestly didn't remember any of it. There was no explanation, like drugs or alcohol, behind the gap in his memory. He simply could not recall what had occurred.
Once he saw the discovery for himself and realized the seriousness of what he was accused of, he was terrified. Here was someone confronting behavior that felt completely foreign to him, with no memory of having done it at all. That gap is where our analysis shifted. Rather than assuming the video told us everything we needed to know about him as a person, we needed to understand why this had happened in the first place. We talked with him about how out of character this was and suggested a professional evaluation. Through that process, we learned he had an underlying schizophrenia diagnosis he hadn't even known about himself.
With certain mental health conditions, including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, a person experiencing a psychotic episode may not recognize or acknowledge that anything unusual is happening to them at all. That reality can make a case especially difficult, because the person sitting across from you may not know there's an underlying issue driving their own actions.
When Mental Health Changes the Direction of a Case
Once a qualified professional identifies an underlying mental health issue, it can reshape our entire approach to resolving a client's case. Documented mental health conditions can serve as important mitigating information in conversations with prosecutors and courts, and depending on where a case is pending, that documentation can also open the door to dedicated diversion options built specifically around treatment.
For example, diversion programs that we’ve seen come into play in various cases include:
- Travis County felony mental health diversion, for qualifying felony-level cases.
- Travis County misdemeanor mental health diversion, for qualifying misdemeanor-level cases.
- Similar programs in other counties we serve, which we evaluate case by case depending on where the charge is filed.
What makes mental health diversion different from a standard pretrial diversion program is where the focus lies. A typical diversion program is usually built around a checklist of tasks to complete, like attending a course and paying a fee. Mental health diversion asks something different of a defendant, though. Rather than checking boxes, the core requirement is establishing care with a mental health provider and following that provider's recommendations, which might include medication management, ongoing therapy or counseling, or another form of continued treatment tailored to the diagnosis. For clients who complete the program successfully, the case can ultimately be dismissed, and they may become eligible to pursue an expunction.
A Conversation Worth Having
For someone who walked into our office facing a criminal charge, using a mental health diversion program as part of the case outcome can be significant. But beyond the legal result, we hope we've also helped that person recognize and start addressing something that had been affecting their life long before they ever needed a defense attorney.
If you or a loved one is facing a criminal charge in Texas and you suspect a mental health condition may be part of the picture, contact us online or call (512) 991-0576 today. We'll take the time to understand the whole story beyond the criminal charge.
