NCJ Number
123708
Journal
International Journal of Law and Psychiatry Volume: 12 Issue: 2/3 Dated: (1989) Pages: 105-115
Date Published
1989
Length
11 pages
Annotation
The problems of mentally ill offenders arise in part from their unique position at the intersection of the mental health and legal systems; differences in the meaning of "mental illness" as used by the two systems have contributed to a group of largely unstudied offenders who fall at the semantic dysjunction of the two systems.
Abstract
The mentally ill in the community -- often without supervision or active treatment and frequently living in disadvantaged, high-crime neighborhoods -- inevitably encounter police officers. They are likely to be arrested for minor offenses rather than receive a warning, because the police perceive their behavior as unpredictable. Most defendants who have mental disorders are not found legally "mentally ill" to the extent that they are found incompetent to stand trial, guilty by reason of insanity, or guilty but insane. Persons not legally "mentally ill" are labeled simply "criminals." They are likely to be incarcerated, where they receive minimal mental health services. Upon release, there is generally insufficient cooperation between the criminal justice and mental health systems in meeting the physical and emotional needs of mentally ill ex-offenders. 32 references.