Criminal Justice Abstract

Mental Disorders in the Criminal Justice System

Mental Disorders in the Criminal Justice System
Abstract

The purpose of this research is to identify and explore mental disorders in the criminal justice system. It has been said that there is a substantial increase in the number of offenders with mental disorders in the justice system, instead of them being sent to mental institutions where they can receive help. The mental health system agrees with this statement; whereas those in the criminal justice system say that offenders with mental disorders are treated with the appropriate care needed. This research will answer questions such as 1) What is being done to help offenders with mental disorders? 2) What classifies an individual as having a mental disorder? and 3) Is there a problem surrounding this issue? The main focus of this essay is exposing, with evidence, the problem surrounding offenders with mental disorders and provides other alternatives when dealing with offenders with mental disorders. One thing that is left open for review is how effective are these alternatives.

Mental Disorders in the Criminal Justice System
The incarceration of people with mental illness in America is on the rise. Jails have effectively become America’s new mental institutions; they house a larger volume of mentally ill people than all other programs combined. Many offenders with mental illnesses never receive treatment during incarceration; without proper treatment conditions can worsen. Offenders can become a greater threat to themselves and to others when they leave jail or prison. This is not only a disservice to the offenders and their families, but it is a threat to public safety.
Many inmates with severe mental disorders report receiving no psychiatric treatment services while incarcerated. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, only 41% of mentally ill persons in jail and only 60% of those in prison received some form of mental health treatment while incarcerated. The most common form of treatment is medications, with only 16.2% and 44.1% of those treated in jails and state prisons respectively reporting receiving any form of counseling (Lambarti & Weisman, 2004).
This research will answer questions such as:
1) What classifies/defines an individual as having a mental disorder?
2) Is there a problem surrounding the issue of incarcerating offenders with mental disorders?
3) What is being done to help offenders with Mental Disorders?
What classifies/defines an individual as having a mental disorder?
Defining an individual as having a mental disorder is very complex. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ("DSM-IV-TR") defines "mental disorder" as a syndrome or pattern of behavior that causes some type of actual distress (like pain) or in some other way interferes with a person 's ability to function (Sims, 2009). However, two cautions should be noted. First, there is enormous heterogeneity within each disorder category; meaning that people who meet the criteria may have different presentations. Second, these diagnostic criteria were developed for clinical and research purposes; they were not developed to answer legal questions and indeed do not do so (Morse, 2011). In simple terms, a mental disorder is a behavior that is outside of the norms set for society, a behavior that has no explanation or reasoning behind it due to suffering and/or dysfunction.
Is there a problem surrounding the issue of incarcerating offenders with mental disorders?
Generally, it has been reported that 10 to 15 percent of persons in jails and federal and state prisons have severe mental illness (Lamb et al, 2004).Though slow to come to light, information about the increasing numbers of people with mental disorders within the criminal justice system in the 1970s. The increase of people with mental illness within the criminal justice system appeared to correspond with the reduction in psychiatric beds, and the notion that people with mental illness were becoming criminalized became better publicized. Along with the increasing number of people with mental illness in jails and prisons came the countless of associated problems, such as victimization of incarcerated people with mental illness and difficulty getting timely psychiatric care. In 1955, there were 559,000 state hospital beds for a population of 164 million people. By 1994, there were only 72,000 state hospital beds for a population of 250 million people. The beds per 100,000 people had dropped dramatically from 339 to 29. In addition, the number of people in jails and prisons also rose significantly. The other side of the same phenomenon was the increasing number of prisoners associated with the reduction in psychiatric hospitals. According to statistics, there seems to be a huge problem regarding the incarceration of offenders with mental disorders It has become increasingly apparent that people with mental illness are represented in disproportionate numbers within the jails and prisons of our country. In this regard, numerous factors have been described as being contributory including deinstitutionalization (Chaimowitz, 2012).
What is being or can be done to help offenders with Mental Disorders?
There are a couple of different alternatives for individual with mental disorders that come in contact with the criminal justice system. One of the most common is jail diversion. Jail diversion generally refers to specific programs that screen detainees in contact with the criminal justice system for the presence of mental disorder; they employ mental health professionals to evaluate the detainees and negotiate with prosecutors, defense attorney, community-based mental health providers, and the courts to develop community-based mental health dispositions for mentally ill detainees. The mental health disposition is pursued as an alternative to prosecution, as a condition of a reduction in charges, or as satisfaction for the charges. Once such a disposition is decided upon, the diversion program links the client to community-based mental health services. Broadly defined, diversion leads individuals with mental illness or substance use problems away from criminal incarceration. Diversion services may either prevent incarceration or cut it short (Bernard, 2000).
Conclusion
Studies and articles show that there is indeed a rise in number of offenders with mental disorders. There are many alternatives when dealing with these offenders other than just sending them to jail. Jail only harms them and makes them worst off. If the criminal justice system would collaborate with the mental health system this problem would easily be solved. It is important to promote equality in the process of convicting mental health individuals. As hospitals beds increase, prison beds will decrease; as hospital beds decrease, prison beds increase, and people with mental illness will move from one institution to another. The care needs of an offender with one or more mental disorders can be complex and may change with time. Their management depends upon an understanding of the relationship between mental disorder and offending behavior, as well as the criminal justice process. Correct placement, with the appropriate multi-disciplinary and multi-agency involvement in treatment and follow-up, is central. References
Bernard S. 2000 Sep 21. Mental Health and Criminal JusticeTestimony [Internet]. [2009 May 27, cited 2013 March 31] . Available from: http://www.hhs.gov/asl/testify/t000921a.html
Chaimowitz, G. (2012). The Criminalization of People With Mental Illness. Canadian Journal Of Psychiatry, 57(2), 129. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=4&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=psyh&AN=2012-06311-010
Corrado, R. R., Cohen, I. M., Hart, S. D., & Roesch, R. (2000). Diagnosing mental disorders in offenders: conceptual and methodological issues. Criminal Behaviour & Mental Health, 10(1), 29. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=6&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=6143871
Lamb, H., Weinberger, L. E., & Gross, B. H. (2004). Mentally Ill Persons in the Criminal Justice System: Some Perspectives. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75(2), 107-126. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=8&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=12525247
Lamberti, J., & Weisman, R. L. (2004). Persons with Severe Mental Disorders in the Criminal Justice System: Challenges and Opportunities. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75(2), 151-164. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=10&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=12525244
Morse, S. J. (2011). Mental Disorder and Criminal Law. Journal Of Criminal Law & Criminology, 101(3), 885-968. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=cd81161a-7889-4d7c-9750-3e160f5a16bb%40sessionmgr114&vid=4&hid=115
Sims, G. (2009). The Criminalization of Mental Illness: How Theoretical Failures Create Real Problems in the Criminal Justice System. Vanderbilt Law Review, 62(3), 1053-1083. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=12&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=43308077

References: Bernard S. 2000 Sep 21. Mental Health and Criminal JusticeTestimony [Internet]. [2009 May 27, cited 2013 March 31] . Available from: http://www.hhs.gov/asl/testify/t000921a.html Chaimowitz, G. (2012). The Criminalization of People With Mental Illness. Canadian Journal Of Psychiatry, 57(2), 129. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=4&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=psyh&AN=2012-06311-010 Corrado, R. R., Cohen, I. M., Hart, S. D., & Roesch, R. (2000). Diagnosing mental disorders in offenders: conceptual and methodological issues. Criminal Behaviour & Mental Health, 10(1), 29. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=6&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=6143871 Lamb, H., Weinberger, L. E., & Gross, B. H. (2004). Mentally Ill Persons in the Criminal Justice System: Some Perspectives. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75(2), 107-126. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=8&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=12525247 Lamberti, J., & Weisman, R. L. (2004). Persons with Severe Mental Disorders in the Criminal Justice System: Challenges and Opportunities. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75(2), 151-164. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=10&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=12525244 Morse, S. J. (2011). Mental Disorder and Criminal Law. Journal Of Criminal Law & Criminology, 101(3), 885-968. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=cd81161a-7889-4d7c-9750-3e160f5a16bb%40sessionmgr114&vid=4&hid=115 Sims, G. (2009). The Criminalization of Mental Illness: How Theoretical Failures Create Real Problems in the Criminal Justice System. Vanderbilt Law Review, 62(3), 1053-1083. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=12&sid=c4bda9b5-cf80-44dd-bf7a-3948749a0ba6%40sessionmgr11&hid=15&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=43308077