Groundbreaking Miami-Dade facility to help mentally ill in criminal justice system

MIAMI - A first-of-its-kind mental health facility is now a big step closer to opening in Miami-Dade County. The facility aims to help people with severe mental illness , who are caught in the criminal justice system.

County commissioners decided to move forward with the next steps to opening the facility. The commission gave the go ahead for the mayor to negotiate contracts for an operator and provider for the new Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery.

Faculty creator Judge Steve Leifman spoke with CBS News Miami about the magnitude of the county's decision.

"This is a huge step forward in getting this building open and I'm quite confident by early next year we will be open," said Liefman.

The Miami-Dade County Jail serves as the largest psychiatric institution in Florida. It has as many beds for people with mental illnesses as all state civil and forensic mental health treatment facilities combined. However, when the Miami Center for Mental Health and Recovery opens, that will change. It will offer treatment and work to rehabilitate people with serious mental illnesses who are caught in the criminal justice system.

"There's really not a continuity of care for this population. They go to crisis care; they go to the street; they just go back and forth. No one has ever been responsible to wrap their arms around them and give them the level of care they need and get them into recovery," said Leifman.

So far, one thousand people have been identified in the community who will benefit from the facility. It's expected to open in February or March of next year.