That's what two state officials will discuss here today with representatives from local law enforcement agencies, hospitals, law practices and mental health and substance abuse treatment centers at a symposium on dealing with mental illness in the court system.

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Stratton and state Department of Mental Health Director Michael Hogan will discuss the local challenges of treatment versus incarceration.

Earlier this year, Clermont County's common pleas court received a state grant to develop a program to divert non-violent mentally ill offenders into treatment rather than jail.

"A person may not need to be arrested, but they might need hospitalization, or might need some care or some meds," said Bruce Gibson, the county's director of probation services. "We're really focusing on the front end to see how we can provide alternatives to the court system. If people aren't violent, they can be dealt with in a different way."

National statistics show one in six people in U.S. prisons is mentally ill.

Gibson said finding alternatives helps the county in a number of ways: Saving money, helping the offender rehabilitate properly and helping overcrowding in the jail and the court system.

The session is at the Batavia Armory, 65 North Second St., and begins at 9:30 a.m. Stratton and Hogan will speak from 1:30 p.m. until 2:30 p.m.

"The goal is to build on this" in dealing with the mentally ill, Gibson said.