Login | August 28, 2025
Specialized docket inspires participants to rise above past behaviors
CHRISTINE HOLMES
Supreme Court
Public Information Office
Published: August 28, 2025
Taking on a specialized docket requires great dedication from the teams involved for it to be successful. Judges must collaborate with not only their support staff, but also other judges, attorneys, probation officers, treatment providers, and community partners.
For Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Sheryl Munson and her staff at RISE Mental Health Court, that commitment often extends past the workday.
Her team oversees nearly 50 individuals in the justice system who’ve been referred to the program by other judges in Franklin County as a post-plea sentencing option. Each participant must have a mental health diagnosis as a primary factor in their offense to qualify for the docket.
Unlike the typical court structure, specialized docket judges and staff meet with individuals regularly, beyond court hearings, to address the behaviors that contributed to their involvement in the criminal justice system.
Mental Health Coordinator Shannon Bradshaw explained that the individuals accepted into RISE have needs that require more attention from court staff.
“We are looking to accept more of the complex cases, like the individuals who have been revolving in treatment and nothing has worked before,” said Bradshaw. “We tend to take on some of the harder cases because we have more support.”
That includes housing opportunities for some participants in need.
“Nothing happens good in anyone’s life until they have stable housing,” said Judge Munson. “The housing is not permanent because the goal is for the participants to become independent, but it helps as a start for those who don’t have stable family support or may be transitioning out of residential treatment.”
Resource navigators with lived experience are also available to assist participants in finding additional community resources to start building a better life.
The RISE staff goes beyond required meeting times by coordinating regular outings during what’s known as RISE Hour. The goal is, according to Judge Munson, to immerse participants in different areas of the community to show them they belong.
Bradshaw further explained that many of the participants enter the program feeling like they’re broken and that they’re bad people.
“They’ve probably been told that their entire lives,” she said. “If you treat everybody with dignity, respect, and the understanding that people can change, I think that it gives them hope.”
Believe to Succeed
“A lot of success stories come out of RISE because when you ask for it, it’s because you’re ready,” said Dustin Starkey, a current participant in the program. “They’re just a bunch of genuine folks who want to see people do better.”
Starkey was first exposed to nartcotics 20 years ago when he tried cocaine with a relative. He became hooked at just 15 years old – the same age he was when he first found himself in trouble with the law.
“I’ve been an addict basically my whole life,” said Starkey.
Without a solid foundation to treat his mental health and addiction, Starkey spent years in and out of prison.
“My mental health plays a huge part of my addiction,” said Starkey. “I could just numb myself and not feel whatever my mental health was trying to push on me.”
The last time Starkey found himself in trouble, he was in a hotel room with a gun, praying to get sober. Soon after, he was caught and arrested for carrying that same weapon. Facing a felony prison sentence for illegally possessing a weapon, Starkey knew he’d fall into the same patterns while incarcerated and would likely become involved in a prison gang.
“I knew that I didn’t want to go back to prison, because I knew I really wanted to change,” said Starkey.
During one of his previous stays at Franklin County Community Based Correction Facility (CBCF), Starkey crossed paths with Shannon Bradshaw, who was leaving to work for Judge Munson. That’s why he requested to be sentenced to RISE Mental Health Court.
“Prison is easy, but who wants easy anymore,” asked Starkey. “You gotta choose the hard way.”
Through the RISE docket, Starkey has found a new purpose in life. In addition to receiving mental health treatment and meeting regularly with Judge Munson and her staff, he works as a pipefitter with his dad and little brother and volunteers in his free time. He regularly visits CBCF to serve at Bible Study and Narcotics Anonymous (NA). Starkey also volunteers alongside RISE Mental Health Court staff at the Columbus Dream Center, helping people experiencing homelessness by cutting hair and providing shower and laundry services.
Despite his successes through RISE, Starkey still finds his old habits creeping up on him at times. Instead of turning to drugs, he said he is now able to recognize when he is starting to slip and has the tools to get back on track.
“It’s not like it used to be,” said Starkey. “I’m not getting high over it. I’m not stealing for money. I got my family’s trust back.”
At just 22 years old, Donovan Sowers is beginning his RISE journey. While serving time at CBCF, he is released to attend weekly meetings.
“Growing up, I had a lot of mental health disorders,” said Sowers. “I wasn’t really around my family. I was in and out of foster care.”
At 13, he ran away from foster care and started getting into trouble.
“I started carrying guns thinking it was cool or whatever,” said Sowers. “Then I started smoking a lot of marijuana.”
In 2023, he was charged with a crime for shooting a gun at someone.
“I wasn’t in the right state of mind,” said Sowers. “I was off my medications.”
During his three months on the RISE docket, Sowers said he has stopped smoking and has a new mindset with the help of Judge Munson and her team because of her commitment to participants and to mental health.
“I didn’t care where I was at or what I was going through or what happened to me,” said Sowers. “She gave me a better version of myself.”
Sowers said he now looks forward to going home, getting his old job back, and taking care of his two young sons.