C6 THE DAVIS ENTERPRISE
Voices of America
FRIDAY, JULY 2, 2021
Alejandro Zambrano: Embracing a new beginning By Lauren Keene
LEFT: Alejandro Zambrano hugs Supervising Deputy DA Chris Bulkeley, who fought to get him into the program. “It’s been a long road. Thank you for being successful. I’m overjoyed,” Zambrano said.
Enterprise staff writer WOODLAND — “Oh. My. God.” That's how Alejandro Zambrano reacted when shown his arrest mugshots from over the years, the images reflecting his struggles with bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, homelessness and methamphetamine addiction. Back then, Zambrano was considered a nuisance in the city of Davis, racking up more than 40 contacts with police in six months, leading to arrests for public intoxication, resisting arrest and, finally, felony assault and battery. Something had to be done. Yolo County prosecutors and Zambrano’s public defender, Allison Zuvela, lobbied for his enrollment in Mental Health Court, a diversion program targeting defendants whose mental illness is the driving force behind their criminal conduct. Spanning a minimum of 18 months, the program engages its participants in intensive treatment with the goal of reducing their hospitalizations, arrests and jail time — essentially, getting them back on the right track. That’s where Zambrano is today. Once homeless, he’s preparing to purchase his first home and continue his education. Once substance-addicted, he’s marking several years of sobriety with his mental health in check. “I thank God for giving me another chance on life,” Zambrano said. Through Mental Health Court, “I’ve regained everything that I lost, like my dignity and self-respect. ” Nearly three years after his enrollment, Zambrano and dozens of others recently celebrated his graduation from the program — the first to be held in open court since the COVID-19 pandemic relegated proceedings online through Zoom. “It’s so strange to see everybody in person,” Yolo Superior Court Judge Peter Williams, who presides over Mental Health Court, said as he took the bench for the June 17 ceremony. “Alejandro, it’s good to see you in three dimensions.” From then on it was Zambrano’s day, as Williams and others who comprise the Mental Health Court team — attorneys, probation officers and Health and Human Services Agency staff — lauded Zambrano’s success. It didn’t come easy, they noted. But despite some missteps along the way, Zambrano ultimately acknowledged his bipolar disorder, committed to taking his medications and took personal responsibility for his actions. “I could either fight it and go against the current, or just accept it and make it easier for me,”
BELOW LEFT: Zambrano shows off his driver’s license which he obtained with help from the MHC team. BELOW RIGHT: Zambrano poses with Yolo Superior Court Judge Peter Williams, who presides over Mental Health Court. Courtesy photos
“I thank God for giving me another chance on life.” Through Mental Health Court, “I’ve regained everything that I lost, like my dignity and self-respect.” Alejandro Zambrano
Zambrano said. “So that’s what I did.” He also took a different view of his bipolar disorder and PTSD — the result of multiple negative life experiences, including six attempts at suicide. “I don’t call them illnesses,” he said. “I call it a challenge, because that’s what it is.” “I’m so impressed with you, and the insight that you’ve shown,” HHSA case worker Terri Lipelt told Zambrano, noting that the onetime “nuisance” now gives back to his community with volunteer work at the Fourth & Hope homeless shelter and Public Defender’s clothing closet in Woodland. Probation Officer Stephen Svetich recalled Zambrano’s initial interview with the Probation Department to determine his suitability for Mental Health Court. They took a pass at first, citing his public safety risk. But Zuvela and prosecutors, particularly Supervising Deputy District Attorney Chris Bulkeley, weren’t having it. “You’re going to get Mr. Zambrano into your program, and you’re going to make it work,” the attorneys told Svetich at the time. “You’ve proved me wrong from the moment I met you, and I’m glad for it.” Added Bulkeley: "It's been a long road. Thank you for being successful. I'm overjoyed." Zambrano’s achievements include publishing a book — “Healing Through Poetry,” a compilation of journal entries he penned in poetic form over the past several years. “I never thought in a million years I would be a published author,” Zambrano said. “I still think, is it real? Let me pinch my cheeks.” Currently a student at Woodland Community College, Zambrano plans to study social justice and human rights at Arizona State University and ultimately launch a film production company. In his "down time," he wants to connect the homeless with the services available to them. Having been homeless himself, “I feel that they can identify with me,” he said. At his graduation ceremony, Zambrano credited his peers in the program, from “newbies” to veterans, for serving as his support network and helping him navigate life’s curveballs. When they gave their status updates during court check-ins, “I would pay close attention to what they had to say. They were my teachers,” Zambrano said. To those who come after him, Zambrano offers some simple advice: Don’t give up. “Never give up hope,” he said. “Learn how to trust people, and keep pressing forward and forward and forward.”
