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Mentally Ill Behind Bars Summary

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The article The Mentally Ill, Behind Bars discusses the happenings within the correctional system in New York of April 2014. Mayor Bill de Blasio and corrections commissioner Joseph Ponte were brought into New York City’s correctional centers that house mentally ill inmates, which make up roughly 40% of the total incarcerated population. This article pinpoints the three areas the city needs to focus on in order to improve the system for mentally ill inmates: the mental health of those incarcerated, Medicade enrollment before release back into society, and instilling programs for the mentally ill that will send them to a treatment facility rather than imprisoning them (The New York Times Editorial Board). The mentally ill in New York cost …show more content…

9, pg. 229). The article I summarized claims that even though there has been a mighty change in the system it was not designed to meet the complicated needs of mentally ill inmates in their care (The New York Times Editorial Board). Both the article and the textbook state the needs of the mentally ill inmates are difficult and expensive and their needs are not always met. The text claims the correctional officers have other needs and the article says the system needs further improvement to fully meet the needs of the mentally ill. It would seem that regardless of if it is a systematic issue that needs to be resolved or a change that needs to happen on a personnel level, both sources clearly state there needs to be changes in effect in order to house these types of inmates properly and …show more content…

The book indirectly supports this idea by repeatedly stating people argue that those with mental illnesses are not getting the adequate amount of help while incarcerated, and sometimes prison life may complicate the problems mentally ill people already face (Ch. 9, pg. 231). If inmates can struggle with menial tasks like standing in line for lunch or medications, or struggle with disrupting behavior, it would make sense to send them to a facility where they can get proper mental health care rather than a disciplinary system that may cause more disruptions and

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The document also put forward the proposition that the mentally ill can improve and become useful members of society, and that the convicts and the insane should not be kept in the same

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Since, such correctional residential facilities are run by programs that can support their system this is a key element that Lobuglio and Piehl has stated in this article. As well as, any other key point, in this article, the finally statement that is held very accountable towards is that in order for this process to thrive it “will require a large expensive, and politically challenging investment…throughout the country.” Besides, it isn’t easy to unwind such development of mass

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This episode of PBS Frontline focuses on the growing problem of the enormous mentally ill criminal population in prisons and jails. The viewer is also provided with insight on the challenges and difficulties many of the released mentally ill face that often lead them back into incarceration. As the numbers of mentally ill offenders increase, much is debated regarding terms of release and the deinstitutionalization of the 1970’s. One of the main focuses of this episode was how many mentally ill criminals often find themselves re-incarcerated. Those that make parole or temporary supervision are usually better off being that they have someone to make sure their lives are organized.

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In “Just Mercy” Bryan Stevenson talks about the layers to each incarcerated individual. He talks about the repeated connections between issues such as mental illness and harsh home environments to juvenile offenders and mass incarceration. Stevenson goes into depth about the different internal and external issues that many incarcerated have. “In fact, there are more than three times the number of seriously mentally ill individuals in jail or prison than in hospitals; in some states that number is ten times. And prison is a terrible place for someone with mentally illness or a neurological disorder that prison guards are not trained to understand.

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Annotated Bibliography Mass incarceration of the mentally ill: Should we revert back to Institutionalization? Etter, Gregg W. Sr., et al. " The Jail as a Dumping Ground:

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Their are around 500,000 mentally ill people that are put away in prisons and jails. In the documentary “The New Asylums”,Ohio's state prison system reveals the issues that are ongoing with mentally ill inmates. The major problem we have today is that no one is taking care of the people of these people. Most mentally ill people live by themselves with no family or friends to take care of them and they are off their medications. The mentally ill come in to prison on non violent offenses such as disturbing the peace, trespassing, etc. After leaving mental hospitals they usually end up on the streets and become homeless.

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In this sense, it is obvious that the PIC system falls short of prioritizing and appropriately addressing incarcerated individuals' mental health needs. This failure has serious consequences since it can worsen underlying mental health difficulties and contribute to a recurrence cycle, undermining rehabilitation and public safety efforts. This is a critical issue that must be addressed to ensure the well-being and rehabilitation of individuals incarcerated. However, it does not hide the fact that PIC does not prioritize the mental health of inmates and provides the necessary resources. The article "Analyzing the Relationship between Mental Health Courts and the Prison Industrial Complex” by Helen Zhou and Elizabeth B. Ford, investigated how mental health courts intersect with and possibly support the prison industrial complex.

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He went on to explain that the people in those institutions are very limited to the things they are able to do and the choices that they can make. Simple choices such as what to eat, what to wear, and what to do in your freetime are made for the mentally ill by the workers. The patients are forced to take medication against their will and are also limited to everyday things such as being outside. There is so much dehumanization that occurs that the mental hospital doesn't feel like a place where the patients are receiving help. Instead, the patients themselves refer to being at the mental hospital as “doing time” as they would in

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Another issue that the American prison systems were facing was their constant practice of locking away mentally ill individuals to very long prison sentences that only seriously worsened their conditions, and even made their chances of overcoming mental illness, nearly impossible. Even medications that were prescribed to these individuals made them suffer serious and sometimes even worse, side effects. Although some states banned the high rates of mentally ill individuals to prisons, this only meant they were more targeted and thrown in jail for petty offenses by police. Many prisons do not have the resources, nor the skills needed to adequately and appropriately care for the mentally ill, therefore many of them suffer and even die from this

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The University of Pennsylvania suggests that there is still a demand for asylums among the severe mentally ill. However, the medical and mental practices of these facilities show reflect the factual definition of asylum, and provide safety and aid to each patient. Mental institutions may allow for mentally ill individuals to avoid discrimination and isolation from society due to their condition. Although conditions for those affected by mental illness as improved, mental health is still shaded by dated stereotypes and outlooks on the topic, and this

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Also receiving the treatment within the jail will allow them to continue to practice safe habits when released rather than behaving criminally and impulsively bringing them back to prison. The National Alliance on Mental Illness believes that prisoners with mental health deserve access to quality mental health treatment. They give statistics to prove that mental illnesses within jails are a big problem and later provide links to what they have already done to help mentally ill prisoners in jails not receiving the treatment they need. The author believes, “People with mental illness who are incarcerated deserve access to appropriate mental health treatment, including screening, regular and timely access to mental health providers, and access to medications and programs that support recovery”(“Treatment While Incarcerated”). To be able to involve all of these different types of treatments, prisons first need to be able to include educated staff.

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The shift is attributed to the unexpected clinical needs of this new outpatient population, the inability of community mental health centers to meet these needs, and the changes in mental health laws (Pollack & Feldman, 2003). Thousands of mentally ill people flowing in and out of the nation 's jails and prisons. In many cases, it has placed the mentally ill right back where they started locked up in facilities, but these jail and prison facilities are ill-equipped to properly treat and help them. In 2006 the Bureau of Justice Statistics estimated that there were; 705,600 mentally ill inmates in state prisons, 78,000 in federal prisons, and

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How does a system that is designed to punish, treat mentally ill offenders? The answer is legislative reforms to provide funding to treat and establish groups to monitor inmates inside prison, however, there must also be community involvement outside of the prison walls where offenders can establish an assistance and not be simply released to the wild as they are

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The mass incarceration of the mentally ill can be reduced by reverting to institutionalization Researchers and activists alike are concerned about the rate at which individuals with mental illness are incarcerated in the United States. Many consider that the increase in incarceration is a direct result of deinstitutionalization. In this essay, I will discuss how the solutions to the prevention of the incarceration of the mentally ill but ultimately lead to the common goal of improving the care of the mentally ill. This will be done by comparing and contrasting the key points of Knoll, Etter et al and Kincaid.

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In 1999, a mental health court was established to therapeutically manage mentally ill people accused of a crime (King County TV, 2010). Unlike a conventional court system, a behavioral health court treats a mentally ill individual with more respect and understanding. According to King County TV (2010), mentally ill clients can propose to be placed in a mental health court system because it will allow them to have a chance to recover. However, when the client is not compliant with the plan of care given to them, he or she could be placed in jail if there is a possibility the

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