Jail Mental Health Evaluation Team (JMET) is a team of mental health professionals and deputies who address the mental health needs of general population inmates within the custody of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. The primary responsibility of JMET is to locate inmates who may be in need of mental health intervention. JMET personnel also conduct follow up of inmates housed in general population who may be at risk for decompensation.
All inmates in the general population shall have access to mental health services. Custody personnel or Correctional Health Services (CHS) personnel may request evaluations. During routine working hours access to mental health services for general population inmates will be coordinated by JMET personnel.
JMET is comprised of three teams. All teams are available during AM and PM shift hours, daily. Deputies assigned to JMET may work individually or with DMH personnel (clinician or psychiatrist). The teams are responsible for each facility as follows:
Command and Control
Sworn members of the JMET are based at the Custody Compliance and Sustainability Bureau (CCSB), and work under the command of the CCSB captain. JMET personnel report to the CCSB JMET sergeant.
In addition to required notifications to facility supervisors, JMET personnel shall contact a JMET sergeant after significant incidents including use of force by or injury to JMET personnel.
JMET Duties
JMET personnel shall make weekly cell-by-cell rounds in all restricted non-mental health housing modules (e.g., administrative segregation, discipline) in an attempt to locate inmates with mental health needs who were not identified during screening or who have decompensated.
JMET shall be notified of inmates transferred to discipline housing from non-mental health housing whose movement history indicates prior housing in a High Observation Housing (HOH) module. JMET personnel shall conduct an assessment of the mental health status of these inmates when conducting their cell-by-cell rounds. Refer to Custody Division Manual (CDM) section 5-09/080.00, "Location of Discipline."
In conducting the rounds, either the JMET clinician, JMET deputy, or the inmate may request an out-of-cell interview. This request will be granted unless there is a clear and articulable security concern that would prohibit such an interview.
Reclassification of K-10 Inmates
In the event an inmate reclassified from [REDACTED TEXT] status is involved in a force incident while being rehoused, the floor sergeant shall contact JMET. Any such inmate must be interviewed by JMET personnel in order to determine if a referral to a clinician is appropriate.
The jail liaison shall contact JMET in the event an inmate is involved in an incident requiring the inmate be evaluated for reclassification as a [REDACTED TEXT] within five days of previously being removed from [REDACTED TEXT] housing. Any such inmate must be interviewed by JMET personnel after being re-housed in order to determine if a referral to a clinician is appropriate.
Crisis Situations
During normal working hours, in the absence of, or in addition to, appropriate medical and mental health care, JMET shall be available to watch commanders to respond to crisis and/or tactical situations. Watch commanders may consider the use of JMET in situations including, but not limited to:
In these circumstances, JMET may act as consultants, or may be used to communicate with the inmate in an effort to defuse a situation.
JMET Referrals
When personnel encounter an inmate who exhibits a need for non-urgent mental health care, or may need the non-urgent attention of a mental health clinician, JMET shall be notified via referral. Personnel at each facility shall submit a "JMET Referral Request" through the electronic Uniform Daily Activity Log (e-UDAL), which sends the request via e-mail addressed to JMET personnel. Custody personnel shall document referrals before the end of their shift. Upon receiving a "JMET Referral Request," JMET personnel shall review the referrals and interview the inmates to assess their mental health needs.
If an inmate exhibits urgent or emergent behavior, custody personnel shall take emergent action. Custody personnel shall utilize the Behavior Observation and Mental Health Referral (BOMHR) form (SH-J-407). Refer to CDM section 4-05/000.00, Behavioral Observation and Mental Health Referral Reports.
Correctional Health Services
JMET referrals should be brought to the originating facility's clinic for evaluation prior to transfer to a new facility for housing, unless otherwise indicated on a BOMHR form. Correctional Health Services (CHS) personnel will prioritize these referrals. These inmates shall be medically assessed to determine if they are appropriate for transfer to mental health housing at TTCF or CRDF. A clinician shall recommend the appropriate housing location at TTCF or CRDF based on their initial assessment of the inmate. The watch commander, in conjunction with CHS personnel, shall make the final determination for immediate or routine transportation of the inmate. Alternate transportation shall be arranged if the inmate's condition decompensates or warrants any urgency as determined by JMET.
It is the intent of this policy that inmates referred to mental health housing by JMET receive a medical assessment prior to their transport to TTCF or CRDF, unless otherwise indicated on a BOMHR form. However, no inmate shall be unduly delayed in this process. If the watch commander of the originating facility determines that a medical evaluation will cause an unnecessary delay in the movement of the inmate, the watch commander may authorize the immediate transport of the inmate to the IRC or CRDF main clinic, where a medical assessment shall occur. The name of the watch commander giving the authorization shall be noted on the BOMHR form.
For non-urgent mental health referrals, the medical section of the original BOMHR form shall be completed and identified as a JMET referral. The words "JMET Referral" shall be stamped or handwritten across the top with the recommended housing location clearly visible in the upper right hand corner.
Transporting Deputy
Transportation of the inmate to TTCF or CRDF mental health housing shall be provided by the facility from which the inmate is being transported. Refer to CDM 4-05/000.00, "Behavioral Observation and Mental Health Referral Reports."
Confidentiality
JMET personnel shall maintain the confidentiality of all JMET referrals pursuant to law. Additionally, all JMET members shall have a signed Oath of Confidentiality on file at CCSB. This oath mandates that an inmate's mental health history as well as current information obtained from a JMET contact is considered confidential.