Miami-Dade County Judge Steven Leifman has been at the forefront of a public policy movement to reduce the number of people with mental illness in the criminal justice system. In 2000, he launched a pioneering initiative in called the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Criminal Mental Health Project, which steers people with mental illnesses, who do not pose significant threats to public safety, away from the criminal justice system and into community-based treatment. Judge Leifman also started a Crisis Intervention Team program in Miami-Dade which teaches law enforcement officials to recognize the signs and symptoms of mental illness, how to de-escalate potentially dangerous situations, and where to take individuals in crisis rather than arresting them. More recently, Judge Leifman has been heavily involved in the creation of a Mental Health Diversion Center, a public-private mental health facility in Miami-Dade for individuals with serious mental illnesses who are the most frequent users of services in the criminal justice, mental health and primary medical care systems. Scheduled to open in 2020, the center will provide a range of mental and primary health care services, as well as assistance with housing, employment training, daily activities and courtroom support.