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Therapeutic Courts
Our Mission:
The mission of the drug court program is to help individuals suffering from addiction, find a path to recovery that allows them to live a healthy, fulfilling life that is free from drug and alcohol use and criminal behavior. The drug court team seeks to promote community safety and recovery through empowering participants to take control of their lives and end the cycle of drug use and criminal behavior.
Program Overview:
It is our belief that every person’s life is worth saving. Our program proactively seeks out high risk, high need individuals with substance use disorders that are facing felony criminal charges due to their substance use. The drug court program is entirely voluntary. Eligible candidates that are accepted into the program enter a minimum of 18 months of supervision through the Superior Court Drug Court Team. There are five phases to the program. All five phases require attending court session, random urinalysis, case management, and verification of attendance of 12 step sober support meetings. Additionally, each phase requires participants to work towards and achieve program requirements. Some requirements include obtaining a driver's license, addressing medical/dental needs, addressing mental health needs, obtaining a GED, employment and/or higher education.
At the completion of the Drug Court Program, graduates experience substantial changes in their lives and their felony charges are dismissed. Recovery is possible, and it is our goal to help individuals transform their lives to become healthy, honest, responsible, and productive members of the community free from addiction and crime.
The Yakima County Mental Health Court is a collaborative, problem-solving court that strives to promote stability, sobriety and safety for criminal justice involved individuals with mental illness through an intensive program of evaluation, treatment, and frequent monitoring of compliance, while ensuring the security and well-being of the community.
Mental health court is a specialized court docket for certain defendants with mental illness that substitutes a problem-solving model for traditional criminal court processing. Participants are identified through mental health screening and assessments and voluntarily participate in a judicially supervised treatment plan developed jointly by a team of court staff and mental health professionals. Incentives reward adherence to the treatment plan and other court conditions, non-adherence may be sanctioned, and success or graduation is defined according to pre-determined criteria.
Yakima County Mental Health Court is a four (4) phase program of intensive judicial supervision and includes frequent appearances before the Mental Health Court judge, mandatory mental health treatment, and substance abuse treatment if indicated.
Phases are designed to build on the skills learned in the previous phase, allowing the participants to learn to effectively manage their mental illness (and substance abuse, where applicable). As they move through the phases of the program, they will be evaluated and promoted based on successful completion of each phase. A detailed description of each phase is included in the Handbook. Please note, however, that because all treatment plans are individualized, the requirements in each Phase may vary for each participant and may be modified by the MHC Treatment Team and MHC Judge to better fit your needs.
Meet the team making transformation possible
Back Row (left to right):
- Susie Silverthorn, Deputy Prosecutor of Therapeutic Courts
- Shauna Archer, Assistant Coordinator
- Rebecca Godina, Paralegal for Defense Counsel
- Barry Morrison, Defense Attorney for Therapeutic Courts
- Bobbie Burrill, Therapeutic Courts Coordinator
- Judge Elisabeth Tutsch, Yakima County Superior Court Judge
Front Row (left to right):
- Kevin Avilez, Diversion Therapist for Comprehensive Health Care
- Danielle Bronson, Behavioral Health Case Manager for Comprehensive Health Care
- Alexa Torres, Mental Health Professional & Program Manager of the Diversion Team at Comprehensive Health Care
- Anna Huson, Substance Use Disorder Professional Trainee & Drug Court Case Manager at Merit Resource Services
- Alicia Giles, Substance Use Disorder Professional Trainee & Drug Court Case Manager at Merit Resource Services
Our dedicated team of professionals join forces with each participant in a spirit of compassion, respect, and support. Therapeutic Courts are replacing judgment with hope. Through a balance of encouragement and accountability, we empower individuals to break cycles, reclaim their lives, and build a brighter future.
If you, or someone you care about, are currently facing felony and you are interested in Drug Court or Mental Health Court, talk to your attorney today. You can also reach out to our Therapeutic Court Coordinator, contact information is at the top of this page.
If you are in need of support and resources, below are some resources that may help.
Resource Links
Merit
Comprehensive
Triumph
Sundown M Ranch
Suicide Prevention
MAT New Starts Clinic
Pioneer Center East
ABHS
Hope becomes real when we see it in others. These letters from our graduates and their families speak to the power of second chances, healing, and community.
Drug Court Graduate Letters
To Whom It May Concern,
For years, I struggled with addiction, a cycle of substance abuse that seemed unbreakable. My actions, fueled by substance abuse, led me down a path of crime and despair. It was a life I desperately wanted to escape, but I felt trapped, powerless to break free from its suffocating hold.
Admitting my powerlessness over addiction was a pivotal moment, the first step towards reclaiming my life. I reached out and sought help. It was then that I learned of the Drug Court program—a lifeline offered to individuals like me, a chance to rewrite the narrative of my life. The program offered an opportunity for redemption, a pathway towards rehabilitation in exchange for dropping the charges I was facing. Although I heard whispers of its challenges, I was determined to seize this chance for change.
Throughout my journey in Drug Court, I embraced the guidance of my counselors and mentors. I set goals for myself, each one a stepping stone towards a brighter future. But perhaps the most profound transformation occurred within the relationships I forged—a sober support network that became my bedrock. Surrounded by individuals who believed in me, I rediscovered hope and resilience.
Most importantly, Drug Court facilitated the restoration of my relationship with my family—a bond I had long believed irreparably damaged. I uncovered a deep connection I never knew possible through the program's structure and support. For years, I lived under the illusion that I didn’t have a choice, resigned to the fate of a life consumed by addiction. Today, I stand empowered by God's grace, the Drug Court's guidance, and my community's unwavering support.
I now face each day with a newfound sense of purpose and determination. I choose sobriety, I choose freedom. I am deeply grateful to the Drug Court program for providing the tools and support necessary for my transformation. I am eternally thankful for this second chance at life.
- Anonymous Drug Court Graduate
Testimonial from a Drug Court Graduate:
Prior to entering drug court I was lost, homeless, and full of shame and guilt. I was certain this was what my life would be forever. I lived from drug house to drug house, and sometimes, even by the river. CPS took my children the day before Thanksgiving. I was lost without them. I did not try to get them back for seven years.
I was arrested for the last time in October of 2018. At this point I was offered Drug Court. I took this opportunity, and I ran with it! Little did I know, this was the beginning of me getting my life back. I struggled in the beginning. After living so many years using drugs and being homeless, you begin to adapt and learn to survive. I had a relapse a year into the program. I went to Sundown and my whole life has changed since then.
My name is Shauna, and my clean date is 5/14/2019. Today I have all four of my children. I have a husband. I have a home. I have food in my house. And I have a college education. I graduated YVC in 2023 with an AA in Substance Use Disorders and I now work as a Substance Abuse Counselor. My life today is a beautiful one. I am here to share the hope that it is possible to pull yourself out of a dark place and live in the light.
- Shauna
Testimonial from a Drug Court Graduate:
“A failure, as a partner, a father, a brother, and a son.” This was my mindset in my active addiction, which lead to my criminal behavior. Considered a highly violent, repeat offender, I had no ambition for change because I felt I did not deserve it. So, like always, I used drugs, surrounded myself with like-minded people and the cycle of my disease progressed. Abscond, get caught, new charges, incarceration, get out, check-in, relapse and the process would start over again. I deserved every opportunity to make my life worse, according to my disease.
As my disease progressed, so did the crimes I began committing. In 2019 unfortunate circumstances lead to a significant change in my life. Once again, I found myself in Yakima County Jail, this time with 6 felonies pending. Two of which were from another county. I really did it this time, I thought to myself as I sat in jail. I pleaded for help from my disease of addiction, and after 18 months of being incarcerated in county jail, I finally received the opportunity I prayed for. Drug Court.
Drug Court was the catalyst that ignited the change I never thought would be a possibility for someone like me. While in Drug Court, I worked on all the areas of my life that were affected by my disease. By working on myself, I started believing in myself, which gave me the confidence to make and pursue goals that I have accomplished throughout my recovery process. I can honestly say, had it not been for this Drug Court opportunity, and everyone that helped me along the way, I would be either in prison or dead.
Today I have an associate degree of applied science in substance use disorders. I work as a Substance Use Disorder Professional Counselor, have two and a half years in recovery, and am currently working on a bachelor’s degree in the science of sociology. I am truly grateful for all the miracles that have taken place in my life.
- Oswaldo
Testimonial from a Drug Court Graduate Brother:
Both my sister and I struggled with addiction for a long time and it nearly destroyed our family. By the grace of God, I was able to find recovery, but my little sister was still using drugs. For the first time in my life, I got to see and experience the destruction, the pain, and the suffering that we had put my parents and family through for so many years. Only this time it was through the lens of sobriety. My heart ached to see my mom cry and to hear the pain in her voice when she spoke about what my sister was going through.
My sister seemed to have lost everything, including her sanity. We all thought that there was no hope for her, that we were either going to lose her to an overdose, or at the hands of someone engaged in addiction. When she wound up in jail with several felony charges and facing five years in prison, we truly believed that prison or a long term mental health hospital was the only thing that would save her life. Then we found out about Drug Court. We were skeptical but wanted so much for her to live.
My sister went to Sundown M. Ranch, and shortly after was accepted into Drug Court. Over the next two years I watched her life change. She was a completely different person. For the first time in as long as I can remember, we had a whole family that was in recovery. My sister, through the drug court program, became a woman that is trustworthy, honest, responsible, and a friend. Drug Court did not just change my sister’s life, it changed our entire family. I couldn’t imagine our lives being any other way than what we have today.
- Jason