Tribal Courts Are Problem-Solving Courts: The Healing to Wellness Model
Hosted by the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration's GAINS Center
Thursday, October 21, 2021
9am PDT / 10am MDT / 11am CDT / 12pm EDT
The Healing to Wellness Court model is one approach to engaging Native American individuals with mental and substance use disorders who come into contact with the court system. However, Healing to Wellness Courts can range significantly in structure and procedure across jurisdictions, with differing eligibility requirements and pathways to referral.
In this webinar, presenters from three jurisdictions will discuss how they have incorporated the Healing to Wellness model into an array of court services available to Native American people with behavioral health disorders. The presenters will share ways to implement key strategies, including ensuring that eligible individuals who first appear on non-Tribal court dockets are connected with Tribal courts and customizing the Healing to Wellness model to local settings. The discussion around local customization will address staffing a Healing to Wellness Court and working with available resources, formalizing procedural rules, fostering partnerships between Tribal and non-Tribal partners, establishing eligibility screenings and referrals, determining authority to incorporate Native American traditional ceremonies or religion into court policies and procedures, and incorporating special considerations for urban Tribal courts.
Objectives
After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Discuss the ten key components of the Healing to Wellness Court model.
- Understand strategies for linking Native American individuals with mental and substance use disorders to a Healing to Wellness Court when appropriate, even when the individual’s first point of contact is in a non-Tribal setting.
- Discuss strategies for Tribal and non-Tribal partners to better serve Native American people in the court system through partnerships and resource-sharing.
Presenters
- Chaniel Grant, Blackfeet, Coordinator, Healing to Wellness Court Projects, Blackfeet Tribal Court, Browning, Montana
- Jordan Martinson, JD, Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe, Tribal Law and Policy Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute, West Hollywood, California
- Kristina Pacheco, LADAC, Laguna Pueblo, Tribal Wellness Specialist, Tribal Law and Policy Institute, West Hollywood, California
- Hon. Renée Torres, Isleta Pueblo, Judge, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, Albuquerque, New Mexico