Represented clients become eligible for DSU services at arraignment, upon appointment of an attorney from the Managed Assigned Counsel (MAC) roster. Services are provided from arraignment through sentencing with a goal to promote community alternatives to incarceration and advocate for improved legal and social outcomes for the client. The DSU does not currently provide post-sentence services, with the exception of a final session with the client to terminate services.

The DSU strives to provide services that help prevent incarceration and improve connections to longer-term systems of care in the community. These systems of support, care, and treatment, in turn, can provide ongoing, post-sentence support to prevent further contact with the criminal legal system.

Social work services can be requested at any time throughout the duration of a case, but the DSU team will be best positioned to support the comprehensive needs of each client when requests are submitted as early in the court process as possible. In most cases, requests should be made immediately following the attorney's initial client consultation or probable cause conference. Please take into consideration that requests submitted later in the duration of a case may limit the DSU's ability to provide robust support.

Below is the menu of services we are currently piloting. Click each service to view a description and examples of how the service could be used to improve legal and social outcomes for your client.