March
2002

Mental Health and Criminal Justice: The Growing Mission Interface

A major concern of professionals in the criminal justice system is meeting the needs incarcerated persons with mental illnesses. Two major target populations are the focus of concern: first, persons with mental illnesses who are incarcerated unnecessarily and could be effectively diverted from the criminal justice system’s care and custody; and second, the population of persons with mental illnesses who are incarcerated for the commission of a crime and cannot be diverted to non-custodial care. Each population requires a significant degree of collaboration between the mental health system and criminal justice system for effective management and care.

The degree of this challenge is enormous. Recent data estimates that 670,000 persons with mental illnesses are jailed each year in the United States, which is eight times more than are hospitalized each year in the nation’s state hospitals. Persons with mental illnesses are disproportionately represented in jail populations, with 13% of all jailed persons suffering from serious mental illnesses compared to 2% in the general population. Suicide is the leading cause of inmate death in the United States, and 95% of these suicides occur with inmates who have a treatable mental illness. Several studies and media stories have drawn a correlation between the reduction in both inpatient and outpatient mental health services availability and the expansion of incarcerated persons in the criminal justice system. Without taking any position in this regard, the fact remains that the challenge of meeting the needs of these persons is a significant policy and mission consideration for both the mental health and criminal justice systems.

Help may be available through increased funding from both the Department of Justice and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. DOJ, through its Office of Justice Programs, has just released a major grant announcement entitled Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative, that has a due date of May 15, 2002. Meeting the behavioral health care needs of transitioning inmates is a focus of this initiative, and offers the opportunity for mental health and criminal justice system collaboration. SAMHSA expects to issue an announcement of funding availability in the criminal justice/mental health area in the very near future, and has obtained new funding in this area to support such initiatives,

The WICHE Mental Health Program has extensive expertise in this area, having worked for many years with the National Institute of Corrections on mental health related projects, as well as with the states. Should states pursue this area of focus, the WICHE Mental Health Program will be poised to assist their innovation through system improvement design, implementation, workforce development, and program evaluation.