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Cathy Kipp
We know that the lack of behavioral health resources is a pervasive problem here in Colorado. It is crippling and debilitating for so many of our citizens, but unlike a broken bone, mental health is neither so easy to detect or to fix.
The cost of not recognizing and treating mental health issues is huge. In addition to Colorado’s high suicide rate, fallout from mental health affects the behavior of young children in schools, the lost productivity of adults, and the use of our prisons as expensive and ineffective warehouses for people who would be better served with ...
Brian Mason
Brian Mason Statement on Mental Health
We have a mental health crisis in our society and it is particularly acute in the criminal justice system. As a prosecutor for more than 13 years, I have seen this first hand. Countless people enter our courtrooms with untreated mental health problems. A huge number of them get treatment for the first time once they do. This is not as it should be. As a candidate for District Attorney in Colorado’s 17th Judicial District (Adams & Broomfield counties) I am committed to addressing this crisis head on.
The mental ...
Steven Woodrow
Colorado boasts more days of sunshine per year than any other city. Despite the mental health benefits of sunshine, one in eight Denverites are depressed at any given time. Three out of ten children in Denver's middle and high schools feel sad and hopeless. Over 70 percent of people experiencing depression in the mile high city are not receiving any treatment. We have seen the consequences of severe mental health support in the increasing numbers of suicide and addiction. In 2018, Denver residents spoke loud and clear by overwhelmingly passing Caring 4 Denver, funding ...
¿Que es Juneteenth (19 de junio)?
Juneteenth (19 de junio) es un día festivo anual que observa el fin de la esclavitud en los EE. UU. Marca el día (19 de junio de 1865) cuando las noticias de emancipación llegaron a las personas en las partes más profundas de la antigua Confederación en Galveston, Texas - dos años después de que la Proclamación de Emancipación hubiera sido declarado formalmente.
Para celebrar Juneteenth y subrayar nuestra comprensión sincera de que las vidas Negras importan, todo el personal de Mental Health Colorado se está tomando el tiempo hoy para reflexionar sobre las ...
Mary Young
As a lifelong public educator supporting the mental health needs of students and their families first as a special education teacher and then as a school psychologist, one of my primary reasons for running for the legislature was to increase access for all Coloradoans to behavioral health care. The pandemic has highlighted the need for ongoing increased access to behavioral health services. People need parity between their physical and behavioral health care. One of the effects of the pandemic is that there is a greater recognition of these needs. As a school ...
Alexis King
The role of the District Attorney with respect to mental illness is to divert, wherever possible, those with mental illness from the criminal justice system. Our healthcare system is woefully under-equipped to adequately address this healthcare issue. I support the development and expansion of highly successful co-responder programs to place mental health professionals with police responders, so that folks who can safely be managed with a healthcare response are. For those who commit criminal offenses, I also support the expansion of adult pre-file diversion so that we ...
Linda Stanley
My name is Linda Stanley and I am running for District Attorney in the 11th Judicial District (Fremont, Park, Custer, and Chaffee counties).
As a prosecutor and former police officer, I have always tried to seek justice with compassion. For someone that breaks the law, it is my job to prosecute but not necessarily to punish. I always try to do what's right for all involved including the accused and the victim, while still maintaining public safety.
There are consequences for actions, but I have found on many occasions that mental illness and/or the lack of ...
Dr. Karen McCormick
Society must address our whole health needs, which mean easier access to both physical and mental health systems. The access and benefits must have parity.
Colorado needs better statewide coordination of mental health, physical health, and our criminal justice systems. To better serve those in the public dealing with mental health issues and substance use, we need to build out our mental health care system and shift this care away from law enforcement. Those in law enforcement are not adequately trained to help folks in crisis. Having this be a criminal justice issue is ...
Andres Pico
I consider mental health to be a priority and a state responsibility to work closely with county and local municipalities to ensure access to mental health care is available.
In years past, the state operated a network of state mental health hospitals to handle those with severe cases. The state funding and operations have been cut over the years to where essentially only judicial referrals for those with criminal cases can be accommodated. Others are handled through private hospitals or end up homeless or in county jails, which have become de facto mental health ...
Kyra D. Storojev
Mental health is one of cornerstones of my platform of Common Sense for the Common Good. Growing up my mother suffered from depression episodes where she would stay in her room for days and I had to help take care of her, so I understand firsthand what it can look like. Underlying reasons for depression are the key to unlocking a person from this. I didn't know as a child, but now I understand that we need programs that address those issues and they start from early childhood on.
Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death among young people ages 10 to 24, adults alike ...
