XXI, Sec. 14 Voluntary termination

If someone is taking part in mental health court, they have the right to ask to leave the program on their own. To do this, they need to fill out a form called a Request for Voluntary Termination. Before making this choice, they can talk it over with their attorney to make sure they understand what it means.

The judge overseeing mental health court has to check that the person is making this decision on purpose and without pressure from anyone else. If the judge confirms this is true, the judge must approve the request to leave the program.

Once the judge signs off on the request, the case does not just disappear. It gets handed over to a regular circuit or district court judge, or it may be moved to a different court location if needed. From that point on, the case moves forward like a normal court case outside of the mental health court program.