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Announcing the 2023 Judge Goss Award Recipients

Each year, JPLI celebrates judicial and psychiatric leaders who are committed to the mission of the initiative. This year’s recipients have more than 75 years’ of experience combined and represent leaders from across the country. 

Judge Goss Awardee: Dr. Megan Testa 

Dr. Testa teaches and supervises residents, forensic fellows, and community psychiatry fellows at University Hospitals in Ohio. She is also the medical director at the Cuyahoga County Diversion Center in Cleveland, the first facility of its kind in the state. Dr. Testa has been instrumental in helping to develop clinical protocols and trainings on compassionate client-centered care using a harm reduction approach. Additionally, for nearly two decades, she has provided psychiatric care to people with severe mental illness, substance addictions, and criminal justice involvement, including clients receiving treatment at FrontLine Service, a community mental health agency.  

Judge Goss Awardee: The Honorable Robert Wonnell  

Judge Wonnell presides over the Johnson County, Kansas, Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) program, overseeing a docket of roughly 400 Civil Commitment and 40 AOT cases yearly. He frequently speaks at the request of local and national organizations, such as the Treatment Advocacy Center, to educate others about the benefits of AOT programs. Judge Wonnell has led intensive efforts to support people with behavioral health needs, including bringing together all three branches of government from across Kansas to discuss mental health treatment and crisis stabilization as chair of the first Kansas Mental Health Summit in 2022. He is also a dedicated member of the county’s Mental Health Advisory Board and serves on the Kansas Supreme Court Judicial Education Advisory Committee.  

Lifetime Achievement Recipient: The Honorable Matthew D’Emic  

Judge D’Emic has spent almost three decades dedicating his career to supporting people with behavioral health needs and has acted as presiding judge for the Brooklyn Mental Health Court—the first of its kind in New York state—since its inception in 2002. He also serves as an administrative judge for criminal matters for the Kings County Supreme Court, where he has advocated for gender-responsive services, including as chair of the Gender Fairness Committee and as a member of the New York State Judicial Committee on Women in the Courts. Additionally, Judge D'Emic has promoted systemic reform as a member of a number of other committees, such as the National Judicial Task Force to Examine State Courts’ Response to Mental Illness. 

Lifetime Achievement Recipient: Dr. Stephanie Le Melle 

Dr. Le Melle has spent close to three decades devoting her time and expertise to ensuring that underserved communities receive equitable care. As director of Public Psychiatry Education at the Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute, she helps train psychiatrists to be more recovery-oriented and culturally aware and to recognize how trauma, race, poverty, and being involved in the criminal justice system impact mental health care. She has also been a member of numerous committees, including the New York City Community Services Board, and acted as an expert adviser for Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Task Force on Behavioral Health and the Criminal Justice System. Read more about the impact of Dr. Le Melle’s work in The Council of State Governments Justice Center’s web article, Q&A: How One Psychiatrist Is Working to Ensure Equitable Treatment for People with Complex Mental Health Needs.