Some criminals may suffer from mental illness. The crime that they do may be because they are mentally ill, not because they are mean. Even though being mean can also be the reason. However, should mentally ill criminals go to jail? Is it a wise decision to put mentally ill criminals in jail?
In my perspective, criminals who have mental illness need to go to special prisons. However, of course it depends on the level of their mental illness. Special prisons that I mean is a prison where they are separated from general inmates. It is because if they join with general inmates, they may attack the other inmates or do unwanted things. However, here are some opinions about it according to Quora.
- Paul Passmore, ex-inmate Feds and Calif prisons, said that they should be treated in an environment that separates them from the general public. So, they are not harmful to others or themselves and when deemed rehabilitated, released and monitored and their treatment and their treatment continued as needed. He believes that most inmates or criminals are mentally ill. Even though he does not know what the stats are, but he guaranteed it is seriously undercounted.
- Olivia Young
She said that any criminal who did something illegal should go to prison. Their mental health has almost nothing to do with it unless they get sent to a psychiatric hospital. - Rand Knight
He said that just because someone has got a mental illness, it does not mean that society does not need to be protected from him/her. Just having a mental illness is not a ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card. He took an example of a girl who became a depressed guy’s lover and she was fed up with the guy being gloomy all the time and he threatened to slit his own wrists. Then, she breaks up with him. In a fit of rage, he kills his ex-girlfriend. If this is the case, Rand Knight asks whether this guy should get off because he was mentally ill? Should this guy be housed in a secure mental facility when his mental illness had little or nothing to do with his crime?
A Review of Persons with Severe Mental Illness in Jails and Prisons (Incarceration vs Hospitalization)
There is a journal by H. Richard Lamb, M.D., and Linda E. Weinberger, Ph.D. entitled Persons with Severe Mental Illness in Jails and Prisons: A Review. Here are some points from that journal.
There are a lot of factors why a person with mental illness is arrested rather than taken to a hospital. Usually, people who are considered to do a crime, they are arrested and brought to jail regardless of their mental condition. The criminal justice system sees that there is no alternative but first place the person in custody in a secure setting and then arrange for psychiatric treatment if needed.
Let’s say that the person is considered to have committed a serious crime. If so, the police and the criminal justice system will usually not want to leave this person in a psychiatric hospital where there is lack of security. Staff may see the offense as secondary to the patient’s illness and the person may be released to the community in a relatively short time.
In 1972, Abramson became the first one who created the term ‘criminalization of the mentally ill’. He observed that people with mental disorders who were involved in minor crimes were increasingly subject to arrest and prosecution in a county jail system.
It is important to know the difference between arrest and incarceration of mentally ill people who have committed minor offenses and those who have committed serious offenses.
In that journal, the writers’ opinion is that the term criminalization should be used primarily in connection with mentally ill people who are arrested, with or without hail detention, and prosecuted for minor offenses instead of being placed in the mental health system. It is obvious that people who have committed serious offenses, no matter how mentally ill, would normally be processed in the criminal justice system. However, it must be admitted that there are a lot of mentally ill people who commit serious crimes and get into the criminal justice system and they may not be involved in such behaviour if they had been getting adequate and appropriate mental health treatment.
The Reasons of A Lot Of People with Mental Illness in Jail
According to the Camh site, here is the explanation about why many people with mental illness are in jail.
The first reason is that some of the problems in a person’s development that are associated with offending such as poverty, broken families, substance abuse in the home, physical and emotional abuse experience are problems that increase the risk of suffering a serious mental illness. So, people with problems of criminal behaviour may also have problems of mental illness. However, the illness is not the cause of their criminality.
The second reason is that people with mental illness may have higher rates of unemployment or live on social assistance. They may struggle financially, they may live in poverty conditions, they may live in neighborhoods with crime, alcohol and drug issues. Also, they may have problems facing their daily life. These issues may lead to conflict with the law. The rates of crime and arrest in poorer communities are higher than in others.
The third reason is that sometimes the symptoms of the mental illness itself cause the criminal offending. There are some examples of mental states that may encourage aggressive behaviour such as the increased fear and suspiciousness of paranoid delusions, or the labile, irritable and grandiose ideation of manic episodes. Usually, police recognise the problem is mental health and they will ask for mental health care. However, if the offending is serious, there will be criminal charges which follow.
Several Things to Do to Avoid People with Mental Illness Do Crime
As explained on the Camh site, there are several things to do to avoid people with mental illness from committing crimes. One of the things to do to prevent people becoming involved in the criminal justice system is that strong services, good housing, income support and addressing poverty are important. Besides, if someone with a mental illness is involved in the criminal justice system, we have a responsibility as a society to ensure that we provide them with care and support.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
