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Procedures For Admission to a Florida Forensic Facility
Authority for the provision of these services is provided in Chapter 916, F.S. *. Evaluation and treatment prior to an adjudication of incompetent to proceed (ITP) or not guilty by reason of insanity (NGI) and in-jail treatment are provided at the local level, with funding shared by the local county. Individuals are served by state mental health treatment facilities after an adjudication of incompetent to proceed or not guilty by reason of insanity and determination that commitment criteria are met. All individuals committed to Florida Department of Children and Families for involuntary treatment, pursuant to Chapter 916, F.S., are charged with a felony offense.
While defendants in criminal proceedings have been admitted to Florida State Hospital since prior to World War I, the forensic program was not opened until 1973. The program opened as a result of demands for separate space for criminally charged residents. The program has grown from a single program serving 42 individuals to the Forensic Service of today, which includes two separate facilities on the hospital grounds (an admission facility with a capacity for 150 male individuals and a separate female admission area and longer-term male treatment program with a capacity for 319 individuals).
The majority of persons admitted to the Forensic Service of Florida State Hospital have been adjudicated incompetent to proceed with a primary goal of restoration of competency. The other major group of individuals were found not guilty by reason of insanity with stabilization and post-hospital planning as primary goals. Florida State Hospital is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). This accreditation was renewed in 2012 for three years. The treatment program at FSH includes a variety of treatment, rehabilitation and enrichment services to address the therapeutic needs of each individual. Services include evaluation and assessment, individualized service planning, psychiatric treatment, judicial competency training, health care services, psychiatric rehabilitation, vocational and education services, addiction services, rehabilitation therapy and a wide variety of enrichment activities.
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