The Criminalization of Mental Illness: Crisis

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The Criminalization of Mental Illness Crisis
Opportunity for the Justice System
Risdon N. Slate, Ph.D. Professor of
Criminology Florida Southern College
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Prevalence of Mental Illness in the Criminal
Justice System

• Jails and prisons in the U.S. hold three times
  more persons with mental illness than do
  psychiatric hospitals in America (Human Rights
  Watch Report, 2003).
• Jails comprise the 3 largest inpatient
  psychiatric facilities in the country.
• Estimates are that around 16 percent of jail and
  prison populations in the U.S. are comprised of
  persons with mental illness (Ditton, 1999).
  (Compare to James Glaze, 2006 BJS/DOJ study).

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Deinstitutionalization
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• Mental illness is not a choice. It is a medical
  disease. (Greenberg, 2001, p. 43).

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The Sequential Intercept Model viewed as a series
of filters
Source Munetz, Mark and Griffin, Patricia. Use
of the Sequential Intercept Model as an Approach
to Decriminalization of People With Serious
Mental Illness. (2006) Psychiatric Services
57544-549.
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Criminal Justice System Responses

• Law Enforcement (CIT, CSOs and Mobile Crisis)
• Mental Health Courts
• Discharge Planning Diversion Re-entry

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The True Solution Lies In More And Better Mental
Health Services

• Evidence based practices, including
• Assertive Community Treatment (aka FACT)
• Integrated mental health/substance abuse
  treatment.
• Supported Employment
• Supportive Housing
• Peer services and supports
• Acute care beds and/or crisis stabilization
  services

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Does Diversion Work?

• Does It Save Money?
• Does it Reduce Crime?
• Does it Help the People Intended to Benefit?

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As noted by Kathryn Power of SAMHSA, Lord Kelvin,
a Scottish Mathematician of the 1800s, once
said When you can measure what you are
speaking about, and express it in numbers, then
you know something about it but when you cannot
measure it, when you cannot express it in
numbers, your knowledge is of a meager and
unsatisfactory kind.
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2007 RAND STUDY

• Allegheny County, PA
• Total Cost Savings of
• 9,584.00
• per participant
• for a
• ½ Million Dollar Savings
• Over 2 Years

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Cost Savings
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Californias AB 2034 Program
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Crises Often Drive Policy In The Justice System

• Crisis Intervention Training Memphis PD
• Eugene Gregory Alan Singletary
• Aaron Wynn
• Brad H.
• Andrew Goldstein
• Seung-Hui Cho
• Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (Parity)

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Crisis in Mandarin Chinese
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Hippocrates

• A wise man should consider that health is the
  greatest of human blessings, and learn how by his
  own thought to derive benefit from his
  illnesses.