Essay On The Role Of Mental Health In Prisons

1339 Words6 Pages

Historically, the government's reaction to the mental health of its incarcerated have had little improvement. In the past, prisons focused more on punishment rather than rehabilitation. Rather than focusing on the root cause of most crimes. Like mental stability or home environment. They choose to look toward the future rather than the past. Convicts with external factors playing a role, such as "mental illness or substance abuse problems, interact with law enforcement at high rates'' (Serpas). This quote from an academic and peer-reviewed sentence offers a social perspective, which goes hand in hand with the health perspective that the academic collection of articles Sage Journals supplies. They show influential stakeholders have all fully …show more content…

Once again, the Brennan Center for Justice, a conglomeration of peer-reviewed and scholarly articles that relate to criminal health, sustains the idea that mentally ill criminals make up roughly, “79 percent of those behind bars” (Serpas, et al.). This quote uses a social perspective to prove my point that outlying factors, such as mental health, truly make up most arrests. Therefore, these pieces of research go along with what the Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, an academic, peer-reviewed article with a health perspective insists they work in the health and social structure of the world. Discussing health issues that are common among the arrestees, include, “substance abuse, mental illness, and co-occurring disorders” (Matz). Based on these backing my points, it is safe to say these communities that are at a higher risk for mental illness are making up a majority of criminals currently …show more content…

To help show the argument HeinOnline brings in its legal perspective. It is a collection of both scholarly and legal cases relating to this topic that shows the idea that the relationship between mental health and criminal arrests “has long been a legal Backwater” (Slobogin). This evidence shows my major arguments because despite mental health playing a huge role in criminal arrests, the government has historically overlooked this grave factor. This piece of evidence entwines with what the scholarly article Crime and Justice states. It discusses how changes are “sorely needed” (Mulvey. Et al.), especially in how they are processed within the justice system. These pieces of support bring to light the idea that the way the government has been handling the current mental health crisis in its prisons has been inadequate in more ways than