What's the average (of course, approximate) time incompetent people sit in your county's jail while waiting for beds to open at appropriate state mental health facilities? How long does it take to move to the top of the waiting list?
Thanks in advance

Well, in Travis County, that waiting period went way down right after a lawsuit was filed, alleging that the State had a duty to take incompetent defendants immediately.

We had one recently who sat about 30 days waiting for a bed at Vernon.

This is a major issue around the state related, simply, to lack of adequate state MH facilities.

There is a second issue about which there is controversy, namely the design of a restoration program. All agree such should have clinical and educational/cognitive elements, but some argue the latter (education) is a major factor and others argue that national data would suggest that the vast number of persons found incompetent will restore simply with aggressive psychiatric treatment. This model would cost much less.

The third issue - for large counties -- is a JIMS tracking mechanism to adequately and timely track all such persons being held.

Finally, for those misdemeanants who are found incompetent and not forseeably likely to be restored, wherein charges are dismissed and the def is referred for civil commitment, there is the issue of access to outpatient care...