My First Essay for Criminal Law....Enjoy
Jailing Mental Illness
Evan E. Kerr
CJ 105 Criminal Law
1135 Tuesday - Thursday
According to Human Rights Watch in their published Study Ill Equipped: U.S. Prisons and Offenders with Mental Illness summarizes at the beginning of the publication that there are between two and three hundred thousand men and women in U.S. prisons that suffer from some form mental disorder such as schizophrenia and depression, and bipolar Disorder. Also stated in the summary “ an estimated seventy thousand are psychotic on any given day.” How are these prisoner with mental illness dealt with within the corrections domain? On many occasions they are not dealt with at all, and if they dealt with it is dealt with by isolating the prisoner from general population.
Prisons are not meant to be mental health facilities, they are institutions of punishment of convicted criminals, yet those that suffer from mental health issues are sent to prison because of their mental health problems and encounters with the police after a crime has been committed. “Many of the men and women who cannot get mental health treatment in the community are swept into the criminal justice system…” (Ill Equipped: U.S. prisons and Offenders with Mental Illness) The fact that they are sent to prison for a mental disorder can be seen as a cruel and unusual punishment due to the prisons mental health services deficiencies, little or no funding, understaffing, and limited programs. In many cases prison guards have little training in recognizing or dealing with the mentally ill prisoner.
In the 20 October 2001 Issue of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel an article appeared about a class action suit filed in 2000 by two inmates at the Wisconsin Supermax prison alleged that their incarceration was cruel and unusual punishment and violated the U.S. Constitution because of their mental illness. U.S. District Court Judge Barbara Crabb agreed with the claim and ordered five inmates removed to facilities that could better handle their mental health needs. Crabb allowed the class action suit to move forward and the case was to begin in July of 2001 until a settlement was reached 24 January 2002 after 8 negotiations with a stipulation that mentally ill prisoners where not to be incarcerated at all in the Supermax. The Wisconsin Supermax prison was never meant to house the mentally ill, the Supermax was originally meant for prisoners with extreme violent behavior, and repeated escape attempts. The officials had the mentally ill incarcerated in the Supermax based upon the prisoner’s behavior profiles, which did not take into account the prisoners mental health problems.
To summarize, there is a need to better assist those that have a mental illness that may result in a in altercation with law enforcement, that may result in imprisonment, the use of a medical alert bracelet would inform officers that they are dealing with a person that has mental disorder, the police can take that person to the mental health hospital instead of to jail. Better training of prison staffs to recognize potential mental illness that may be present, and more mental health professionals added to prison staffs to assist in diagnosis of potential mental illness of the prisoners, and to help care for the prisoners needs while incarcerated.
Sources:
1. Ill Equipped: U.S, Prisons and Offenders with Mental Illness (PDF) by Sasha Abramsky and Jamie Fellner Copyright 2003 by Human Rights Watch
2. Bipolar Disorder and Law Enforcement by Patty Fleener M.S.W. Bipolar Disorder Today http://www.mental-health-today.com/bp/art16.htm copyright 2002-2005 Patty Fleener M.S.W.
3. Supermax Comes Under Scrutiny: Judge says conditions are harsh for mentally ill; officials defend placement by Richard P. Jones Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 20 October 2001 as posted at http://www.prisoncentral.org/prisoncentral/supermax/
Evan E. Kerr
CJ 105 Criminal Law
1135 Tuesday - Thursday
According to Human Rights Watch in their published Study Ill Equipped: U.S. Prisons and Offenders with Mental Illness summarizes at the beginning of the publication that there are between two and three hundred thousand men and women in U.S. prisons that suffer from some form mental disorder such as schizophrenia and depression, and bipolar Disorder. Also stated in the summary “ an estimated seventy thousand are psychotic on any given day.” How are these prisoner with mental illness dealt with within the corrections domain? On many occasions they are not dealt with at all, and if they dealt with it is dealt with by isolating the prisoner from general population.
Prisons are not meant to be mental health facilities, they are institutions of punishment of convicted criminals, yet those that suffer from mental health issues are sent to prison because of their mental health problems and encounters with the police after a crime has been committed. “Many of the men and women who cannot get mental health treatment in the community are swept into the criminal justice system…” (Ill Equipped: U.S. prisons and Offenders with Mental Illness) The fact that they are sent to prison for a mental disorder can be seen as a cruel and unusual punishment due to the prisons mental health services deficiencies, little or no funding, understaffing, and limited programs. In many cases prison guards have little training in recognizing or dealing with the mentally ill prisoner.
In the 20 October 2001 Issue of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel an article appeared about a class action suit filed in 2000 by two inmates at the Wisconsin Supermax prison alleged that their incarceration was cruel and unusual punishment and violated the U.S. Constitution because of their mental illness. U.S. District Court Judge Barbara Crabb agreed with the claim and ordered five inmates removed to facilities that could better handle their mental health needs. Crabb allowed the class action suit to move forward and the case was to begin in July of 2001 until a settlement was reached 24 January 2002 after 8 negotiations with a stipulation that mentally ill prisoners where not to be incarcerated at all in the Supermax. The Wisconsin Supermax prison was never meant to house the mentally ill, the Supermax was originally meant for prisoners with extreme violent behavior, and repeated escape attempts. The officials had the mentally ill incarcerated in the Supermax based upon the prisoner’s behavior profiles, which did not take into account the prisoners mental health problems.
To summarize, there is a need to better assist those that have a mental illness that may result in a in altercation with law enforcement, that may result in imprisonment, the use of a medical alert bracelet would inform officers that they are dealing with a person that has mental disorder, the police can take that person to the mental health hospital instead of to jail. Better training of prison staffs to recognize potential mental illness that may be present, and more mental health professionals added to prison staffs to assist in diagnosis of potential mental illness of the prisoners, and to help care for the prisoners needs while incarcerated.
Sources:
1. Ill Equipped: U.S, Prisons and Offenders with Mental Illness (PDF) by Sasha Abramsky and Jamie Fellner Copyright 2003 by Human Rights Watch
2. Bipolar Disorder and Law Enforcement by Patty Fleener M.S.W. Bipolar Disorder Today http://www.mental-health-today.com/bp/art16.htm copyright 2002-2005 Patty Fleener M.S.W.
3. Supermax Comes Under Scrutiny: Judge says conditions are harsh for mentally ill; officials defend placement by Richard P. Jones Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 20 October 2001 as posted at http://www.prisoncentral.org/prisoncentral/supermax/
posted by CaptCBleu at 18:13
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