San Diego County settles long-running lawsuit’s claims over mental health care in jail

Lawyers representing people in San Diego County jails have reached a settlement in a key part of a long-running class-action lawsuit that will require Sheriff Kelly Martinez to improve the level of mental health care provided in the county’s jails.

The agreement, which was filed in San Diego federal court late Thursday, calls for the Sheriff’s Office to do more to treat mentally ill people who are booked into county custody.

It also requires San Diego County to hire more mental health providers to serve in its jails, and it calls for the federal court to retain jurisdiction over the case to make sure that promised reforms are implemented.

“These changes represent important steps in the improvement of mental health services for mentally ill incarcerated persons,” the 52-page agreement says.

“The parties agree that additional changes will be beneficial to the jail mental health delivery system, including additional care for incarcerated persons with mental health issues and more access to mental health services,” it adds.

More specifically, the settlement terms call for the sheriff to assign registered nurses to complete initial screenings of people in custody during the booking process, and to refer them to a “qualified mental health professional” within four hours if clinically needed.

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