State Mental Health Treatment Facilities

North Florida Evaluation and Treatment Center (NFETC)

Who We Serve

Chapter 916 of the Florida Statutes provides for the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to evaluate and treat persons who are committed by a court as being incompetent to proceed (ITP) through the criminal justice system because of a mental illness. The law also provides for DCF to treat persons found to be not guilty by reason of insanity (NGI) who are also found to be dangerous to themselves or others.

The men we treat who are ITP are generally returned to Court as competent. This allows the Court to continue with their trial or sentencing.

When a Patient is returned to court as competent four things could happen:

1) adjudicated and sentenced;
2) placed in a follow-up program;
3) set free; or
4) returned to DCF as remaining incompetent.

Those Patients who do not become competent or who can be treated in a less restrictive setting are transferred to the appropriate facility (e.g., civil hospital, community provider) with the Court's approval.

The men who are NGI are treated until they are no longer considered to be manifestly dangerous. They are then returned to Court for a hearing to determine whether a proposed discharge plan is acceptable. If the plan is accepted, the Patient is discharged to a civil hospital if he needs further in-patient treatment, placed in a community program such as a halfway house, or placed on his own with follow-up treatment mandated.