Mentally ill persons in the criminal justice system: some perspectives

There is an increasing number of severely mentally ill persons in the criminal justice system. This article first discusses the criminalization of persons with severe mental illness and its causes, the role of the police and mental health, and the treatment of mentally ill offenders and its difficul...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPsychiatric quarterly Vol. 75; no. 2; pp. 107 - 126
Main Authors Lamb, H Richard, Weinberger, Linda E, Gross, Bruce H
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Springer Nature B.V 01.06.2004
Subjects
Behavioral sciences
Community Mental Health Services - organization & administration
Correctional treatment programs
Criminal Law - statistics & numerical data
Criminalization
Deinstitutionalization - statistics & numerical data
Health services
Health Services Needs and Demand
Humans
Imprisonment
Interprofessional Relations
Law enforcement
Medical personnel
Mental disorders
Mental Disorders - epidemiology
Mental health care
Police
Prisoners - statistics & numerical data
Prisons
Psychiatry
United States - epidemiology
United States
Los Angeles California
United States > US
California
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Summary:There is an increasing number of severely mentally ill persons in the criminal justice system. This article first discusses the criminalization of persons with severe mental illness and its causes, the role of the police and mental health, and the treatment of mentally ill offenders and its difficulties. The authors then offer recommendations to reduce criminalization by increased coordination between police and mental health professionals, to increase mental health training for police officers, to enhance mental health services after arrest, and to develop more and better community treatment of mentally ill offenders. The necessary components of such treatment are having a treatment philosophy of both theory and practice; having clear goals of treatment; establishing a close liaison between treatment staff and the justice system; understanding the need for structure; having a focus on managing violence; and appreciating the crucial role of case management, appropriate living arrangements, and the role of family members.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:0033-2720
1573-6709
DOI:10.1023/B:PSAQ.0000019753.63627.2c