Alameda County DA's Office Launches Mental Health Commission

ALAMEDA COUNTY — The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office has announced the creation of the District Attorney’s Mental Health Commission, a news release issued by the DA's office reported last week.

The countywide group, including community and "thought" leaders, parents, and activists have volunteered to advise the District Attorney’s Office on the new administration’s response to Alameda County’s mental health crisis.

The coalition will be working to advise the Alameda County District Attorney's Office on mental health issues in the criminal justice system.

Announced Friday, Feb. 10, the District Attorney's Mental Health Commission will advise the DA's office on how to better respond to criminal justice cases involving people with serious mental illnesses. The hope is to provide care and new pathways, rather than punishment, to the families and loved ones of those with mental health challenges.

"We want to treat people suffering with mental health issues with the care and responsible justice they deserve," District Attorney Pamela Price said. "The creation of this commission is just the beginning in effecting change. It won't happen overnight, but rest assured this is a step in the right direction in providing alternatives to mass incarceration."

The recent death of an Oakland U.S. Postal Service Worker, Dilma Franks-Spruill who was stabbed to death in Oakland by a 28-year-old man with bipolarity and schizophrenia has become a clarion call for improvement in law enforcement's response to the issue of mental illness in the community, the news release said.

The suspect's mother called for a greater push for mental health resources. She previously said it was challenging to encourage her adult son to take his medication and pursue help.

"We need to find a way to get our loved one's care - not cages," Kimberly Graves, a member of Alameda County's Families Advocating for the Seriously Mentally Ill, said. "Far too often the only time our family members get treatment is with a criminal sentence and all the additional baggage that comes with it doesn't help their recovery. There must be a better path to recovery and care in our county."

The commission is comprised of 26 members including, Senior Assistant District Attorneys Annie Esposito and Cynthia Chandler; Deputy District Attorneys Jason Sjoberg and Ryan Khojasteh, mental health clinicians Raymond Laundry and Kelsey O’Neil, Pleasanton City Councilmember Julie Testa, psychologist and professor Dr. Tony Jackson, East Bay entrepreneur Ray Bobbitt, and Executive Director/Founder of the Mental Health Association for Chinese Communities, Elaine Peng.

The commission held its first meeting Feb. 9.

"The ideas and input from the commission will be important as the DA’s Office works to improve how the system currently operates and as we prepare to work with county partners to expand the services and scope of our diversion and behavioral health courts," the news release said.