District Court

ABOUT THE MUSKEGON COUNTY DISTRICT COURT

The People of Muskegon County are represented by assistant prosecutors at the 60th District Court, which handles all misdemeanor cases, including Domestic Violence and Operating While Intoxicated. The District Court Division is dedicated to providing strong representation for victims and achieving justice swiftly and fairly.

Mental Health Court

The Muskegon County Mental Health Court is for individuals dealing with mental health and co-occurring disorders. Mental Health Court is a collaborative effort between numerous agencies in Muskegon County to help individuals with criminal charges develop and lead healthy lifestyles.

Mental Health Court is a voluntary program which includes regular court appearances in front of the Honorable Judge Maria Ladas Hoopes. It also involves regular support group meetings, mental health treatment, educational classes, and random drugs/alcohol testing, and community supervision. The Mental Health Court consists of completing three separate phases and a minimum of twelve months of community supervision.

Veterans Court

The Muskegon County Veterans Treatment Court is a court-supervised program specifically designed for veterans of the Armed Forces of the United States as defined by federal law. To participate in the court, a veteran must be screened by our case manager and our veteran affairs liaison. It is designed specifically for veterans who have been charged with felony and misdemeanor drug or alcohol charges, or other criminal charges that are closely related to the offender’s substance abuse or mental illness, which is directly tied to their service time in the military.

Although this is a voluntary program, participants must commit themselves to intensive treatment and supervision that includes regular court appearances before the designated Veterans Treatment Court judge. It also involves drug and alcohol treatment, random drug/alcohol testing, support group meetings, vocational or job counseling, educational classes, and community supervision. The Veterans Treatment Court program is broken into five phases, and you must complete all five phases successfully to graduate. The average length of the program is approximately 18 months. The goal of this court is to provide the veteran participant with the necessary skills and resources to help them manage the mental illness and addiction that brought them into the criminal justice system, allowing them to become successful members of our community.