Crisis intervention in the court room: the case of the night prosecutor

Often the cases seen in a municipal court or a mental health center's crisis department are identical. The concepts used to describe these common cases and the resultant agency actions taken differ drastically between the legal and mental health arenas. This paper presents a working model that combines mental health and legal concepts and personnel to deal effectively with this overlapping body of problems. The model provides for crisis intervention for the clients, preventive education for young attorneys, and system change in the criminal justice system.