The people of Colorado are burdened with an overwhelming number of mentally ill offenders in jails. Ditton's (1999) study (as cited in U.S. Department of Justice, 2004) indicated that approximately 16% of state offenders suffer from a mental illness. The Colorado Revised Statue 16-11.9-101 et seq (2003) was amended to require that a standardized mental health screen be created and implemented in Colorado criminal justice settings in order to address the large number of offenders with mental health problems. This dissertation is one part of the study initiated by the statute to validate the Draft Mental Health Screen for Adults (DMHS-A) in various criminal justice settings. Validating the DMHS-A in criminal justice settings is an important step toward implementation. After the screen is validated and available for use as the Mental Health Screen for Adults (MHS-A), the administration of the MHS-A in criminal justice settings is expected to increase safety for society, staff and offenders, as well as improve security for the facilities (U.S. Department of Justice, 2004). The United States Department of Justice (2004) further stated that the adoption of the MHS-A, which is based on the national screening assessment guidelines, will assist facilities in the reduction of legal liabilities.