A complex fix for a crack in the justice system

Opinion editor's note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.

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Expect to hear a lot about public safety during the coming fall election.

On the ballot: both chambers of the Minnesota Legislature, the governor's office and the state attorney general. Rising crime rates in the metro and beyond have already made this issue a campaign centerpiece for Republicans and DFLers. The rhetoric will only intensify as Nov. 8 draws close.

The fate of one mostly under-the-radar but critical criminal justice reform at the State Capitol this session will help voters separate out the candidates willing to put in the hard work necessary for meaningful improvements from those who are not. That's why bills HF 2725 in the Minnesota House and its Senate companion, SF 3395, bear close attention as lawmakers return from break.

This package of reforms merits passage because it puts forward sensible remedies to fill in a foundational crack in the justice system involving "competency restoration." A 2021 legislative task force report explains:

"People who have been charged with crimes have a constitutional and statutory right not to be tried if a judge determines they are incapable of understanding the proceedings or participating in their defense due to a mental illness or cognitive impairment. When a person is found incompetent, the prosecution of the criminal charges must wait until the person becomes competent or the charges are dismissed."

The crack in the system occurs when the charges are delayed or are dismissed. There should be clear pathways for "restoration" — meaning these citizens get access to the medical care, education and resources they so clearly need. But Minnesota and many other states have long lacked the detailed legal framework to make sure this happens.

Instead, the person found incompetent "must be referred for possible civil commitment." Some meet this threshold and some don't because there's mismatch between the thresholds for civil commitment (basically, holding someone in a treatment facility) and for competency to stand trial.

Those who aren't civilly committed may be left on their own to voluntarily seek treatment. Nothing in law requires them to do so. Nor does the law require "any state agency or local unit of government to provide treatment for competency restoration," the task force stated.

The consequences can include ongoing struggles with illness, finance, housing — circumstances in which these citizens become crime victims themselves. Or, reoffend. A KARE-11 series on competency raised troubling questions about whether this gap allowed the man charged with 2021 mass shooting at a Buffalo, Minn., clinic to acquire a gun.

The public interest in prevention is compelling. How many Minnesotans fall through the competency crack? The state chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) analyzed state courts data. It estimates "1,800 cases with a finding of incompetent across all charges in 2021 (827 felonies, 232 gross misdemeanors, 740 misdemeanors) ... if an average of 40% of those were committed, 60% would be gap cases and that's about 1,080 people in one year." A caveat: "A single individual could be found incompetent more than once, so the number of findings could be (and probably is) higher than the number of people."

The proposed legislative fixes provide the legal framework that the state currently lacks. The package notably also includes a new team of "forensic navigators" who would work across the state to actively steer those in need of restoration to the care they need.

The reforms are result of several years of task force work. Its members include representatives from NAMI, the Minnesota County Attorneys Association, the court system, medical providers as well as crime victim advocates.

That the legislative advocates are bipartisan inspires confidence in state lawmakers' ability to rise above politics and do hard things. Competency restoration is complex, and it aids those too often "in the shadows," as Rep. Tony Albright, R-Prior Lake, puts it. Advocates include Rep. Heather Edelson, DFL-Edina, Sen. David Senjem, R-Rochester, and Sen. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka.

The fixes come with a serious price tag — about $116 million for 2024-25 biennium, a fiscal note estimates. Advocates, however, dispute that and say additional information could lower the cost.

Attempts to fix this on the cheap should be rejected. A troubling crack in the justice system is a serious issue, one requiring comprehensive solutions. Legislators should embrace the excellent work done by the task force and pass reforms reflecting its recommendations.