Case Scenario:
You are part of a citizen's watchdog committee on the circuit court in your region of the state. Recently, the state has started a mental health court, in which defendants may voluntarily enter into a treatment program instead of being prosecuted and sentenced to a prison term.
Mr. John Snodgrass was recently arrested at a local park playground while attempting to look up the skirts of little girls about 5 or 6 years old playing on the park’s monkey bars. His lawyer explained that Snodgrass has a heterosexual pedophilia disorder, but it only results in him looking at little girls—he has never touched one. The judge allowed Snodgrass to voluntarily enter a diversion program for the new mental health court.
Please answer the following questions.
- What is the intent of the mental health court in general?
- Did the judge make an appropriate decision in this case, and why?
- What other alternatives would have been more appropriate for this defendant?