FOX 5 Special: Criminal Minds Pt. 2

One in four people in the Fulton County jail is mentally ill. Many of them don't know how to manage their illness and end up addicted to drugs, stealing to support their habits and then back in jail again. One graduate has fought her way back from the depths of despair.

"I've been in jail 30 times and I'm only 36," said Sharon Thomas.

Thomas was kicked out of her LaGrange home when she was 11.

"I suffer from schizophrenia, bipolar," said Thomas.

Thomas has three children she hasn't seen for more than a decade and she said they are all the product of molestation.

"I'm HIV positive for the last 15 years," said Thomas.

Thomas said she was grateful. "I'm not paranoid. I'm not whispering and listening to another voice that's not there telling me to do something crazy. This life is beautiful," said Thomas.

Thomas graduated from Fulton County's mental health court program last spring under the watchful eye of Superior Court Chief Judge Doris Downs.

There are 625 individuals in the Fulton County jail right now on psychotropic meds," said Judge Downs. "We need sufficient individuals to assess and hook them up with services."

Judge Downs started the mental health court three years ago after noticing that the mentally ill were flunking out of drug court because they weren't taking their medications.

"The most exciting thing to me as a judge is that the evidence shows that those in treatment have a 60 percent better outcome when a judge is involved and that's what's made me so committed to it," said Judge Downs. "These are people who've had negative interactions with judges and are just beaten down and they don't see any way out of the addiction and mental states they're in."

Thomas said that for every crime she was jailed for such as theft, credit card fraud, drug possession, there were many more she got away with, including burglary and armed robbery.

"It's like every day I was going to jail, but for some reason I would get out. I always got out," said Thomas.

When asked about Judge Downs' belief in her, Thomas said, "She said, 'Sharon, I believe in you' and nobody else does." Thomas went on to say, "My mother didn't, nobody else in my life believed in me."

Thomas and other graduates continue to attend counseling sessions in order to share their burdens and support each other.

"I never knew I had a mental health problem. I never knew that someone would care enough for me to help me with my mental health problem," said Thomas.

At the moment, the mental health court has just one full-time employee, which limits the number of people it can help.

"I think we could start with 10. It would be a huge help, because right now we have 100 people in our program. Fifty are with community mental health, 50 are with the drug court mental health program. We need to expand that by hundreds," said Judge Downs.

Thomas now has a job, an apartment, and when she looks in the mirror, she said she likes what she sees.

"There's still lots of temptation I guess. Oh everyday. I fight the urge not to use everyday," said Thomas. "This life is good. I love it. I wouldn't change it for [anything]. All I want to do is get better."

After spending more than half her lifetime addicted to crack cocaine, Thomas has been clean for three and a half years.