Re-Elect Judge Huff
County Court at Law 12
County Court at Law 12
I am Judge Huff. I preside over County Court 12 And the Mental Health Court. I am the mother of 3 children and like so many in our community, I worked while obtaining my education. Family and community means everything to me. My greatest wish is to make our community a better place for my children as well as yours.
County Court 12 is the designated Misdemeanor Mental Health Specialty Court for Bexar County
The Mental Health Court is a treatment/specialty court that helps individuals in the judicial system who have mental health issues. The court uses a wrap around approach of treating the mental health issues as well as substance abuse issues. The goal is to get the defendant back on their feet in life so they will never be in the judicial system again.
I have been involved with specialty courts for over 15 years. I know these courts work hard to get individuals back on their feet in life. When an individual has a mental illness it effects the entire family. The family does not want that individual to go to jail, they want help for this loved one who is now involved in the judicial system. When I took the bench for County Court 12 and the Mental Health Court, I was ready to work hard and improve the mental health court. I made many changes such as prosocial events for the whole family. A mentor program was also started. Small changes such as a new t-shirt for every participants, new graduation gowns, framed diplomas, gift bags, birthday cards to participants as well as gift cards to new parents. Anything I felt would improve morale and help the participants on their new path in life was the goal. I often tell participants that when they are where they should be in life, not only do they benefit, but their family and the entire community benefits.
The Mental Health Court, as well as all the specialty courts, are programs that immensely benefit our community. One of my goals as Judge is to educate the community on what specialty courts are. How they benefit defendants, how do you refer someone, what is the criteria for admission? Bexar County now has 14 specialty courts. To that end, I formed the Bexar County Specialty Courts Coalition in 2019. The goal of the Coalition, besides educating the public, is to build a collaboration among specialty courts to identify gaps, advocate for resources and provide training.
Copyright © 2021 Re-Elect Judge Yolanda Huff - All Rights Reserved.