CLEVELAND — A new program designed by MetroHealth and Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court is working to stop violent crime in Cleveland by starting to address mental health.
The MetroHealth Institute for Health through Opportunity, Partnership, and Empowerment (HOPE) Trauma Recovery Center recently signed a contract with the court to provide trauma counseling and mental health support for defendants in the Violence Intervention Docket, also known as “Gun Court.” All of the defendants participating in the program are indicted on gun-related charges.
The counseling screens repeat offenders to address why they feel the need to carry a gun, or commit crimes.
"When we break down why someone is caring that firearm, almost always they say, I am unsafe, I feel unsafe," says Sarah Hendrickson, the director of the Centers for Trauma Recovery and Health Resilience at MetroHealth. "So what is that, what is that safety, that lack of safety, that personal safety, and why."
Judge Brendan Sheehan says he saw a repeating pattern of trauma as a leading cause for many who carry a gun or commit a crime. So now, instead of just having a probation officer, there is a counselor available that these people can run to.
The hope is also that the program also builds trust between the public and the legal system.
"We had one guy who was on probation in the program, he goes to a party, and he's taking the bus on the way home, and he ends up being robbed. The first person he reached out to was his mentor, and the second person was his counselor," says Judge Sheehan.
The Trauma Recovery Center will receive $275,000 over three years to provide a trauma-informed counselor and coach for participants. The expectation is to serve more than 150 people and permanently reduce the reliance on guns and firearms in our community.
The project is funded by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance. Learn more about MetroHealth's Trauma Recovery Center, here.
Editor's note: The video in the player above is from an unrelated story, published in March of 2021.