Thousands participate in Illinois mental health courts. Half graduate — and millions are left out ^4.6%

STLPR - By Grace Hauck, Josh McGhee, Andrew Adams - 5/8/2026, 1:07 PM

Anecdotal 13.7% - Appeal to Emotion 11.6% - Appeal to Authority 11.2%

This story was originally published by the Illinois Answers Project in collaboration with Mindsite News. Bloomington native Shayla Woodworth had struggled with mental illness and addiction since she was a teen and spent time in jail in three states. She’d heard of mental health courts before but didn’t know much about them, and assumed... more