Breaking the Stigma of Mental Illness in the Criminal Justice System |
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Mental illness is not a crime, but too often, individuals with mental health conditions end up in the criminal justice system. The reasons are varied, but stigma and a lack of access to healthcare are common contributors. This article will explore the ways we can work towards breaking down the stigma of mental illness in the context of the criminal justice system.
Recognizing the Signs
People with mental health conditions can often be misunderstood, and their behavior is often misinterpreted. Common mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and schizo-affective disorder can all contribute to behavior that law enforcement officers may perceive as dangerous or threatening. It's essential to recognize the signs that an individual may be struggling with a mental health issue. Frequently, these signs can include erratic behavior, extreme emotions, and agitation.
Fighting Prejudice
The first step to breaking the stigma surrounding mental illness is to dispel common myths and misconceptions about those who struggle with their mental health. Some of these myths include that people with mental health conditions are violent or unstable. The sad truth is that individuals with mental health conditions are more likely to be victims of violence than to perpetrate violence. It's important to recognize that everyone can be affected by mental illness.
Getting to the Root Cause
Many factors contribute to mental health issues. Stress, trauma, and poverty can all increase the likelihood of developing a mental health condition. Unfortunately, individuals who experience these factors are also more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system. Improving access to healthcare and mental health services is vital in addressing these issues.
Improving Police Response
Crisis intervention training is one way to improve police response when dealing with individuals in a mental health crisis. This type of training teaches officers how to de-escalate situations without resorting to violence. Additionally, having access to alternative resources like mobile crisis teams or mental health professionals can help individuals receive the appropriate care they need, rather than just ending up in jail.
Changing the Conversation
It's essential to shift the narrative surrounding mental illness to one of empathy and understanding. Education plays a vital role in breaking down stigma. By educating our communities about mental health conditions and working to destigmatize them, we can create safer and more compassionate communities.
If you or a loved one has a mental disability and has been arrested or convicted of a crime, you need an experienced criminal defense attorney on your side. Elizabeth Kelley specializes in representing individuals with mental disabilities. To schedule a consultation call (509) 991-7058.
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Representing People with Mental Disabilities: A Practical Guide for Criminal Defense Lawyers
Second Edition
Edited by: Elizabeth Kelley
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The second edition of Elizabeth’s groundbreaking book, Representing People with Mental Disabilities: A Practical Guide for Criminal Defense Lawyers, will be released later this year. This edition will include new chapters on Substance Use Disorders and Post-conviction remedies, as well as updated chapters on Competency, Sanity, False Confessions, and Neuro-imaging. |
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Mental Disability and the Criminal Justice System |
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A podcast which provides information - and hope - to people with mental disabilities ensnared in the criminal justice system, as well as to their families and attorneys. |
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Defending the Unabomber
The ending—abrupt, unsatisfying, badly understood—befitted the strange, unhappy saga of Theodore J. Kaczynski. He was spared a gruelling trial, the judgment of an elaborately chosen, “death qualified” jury, and a strong chance of being condemned to death, but he was saved from all this by a bizarre alliance of lawyers he was trying to fire, a family he had renounced, psychiatrists he did not trust or respect (and in some cases had never met), a federal judge who had drastically restricted his right to counsel and seemed to fear (with reason) the trial to come, a press convinced that he was a paranoid schizophrenic, and, finally, a legendary death-penalty opponent skilled at “client management” (management, that is, of Kaczynski).
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The Erroneous Link Between Mental Illness and Violence
In a National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) online discussion on January 18, guest speaker Eric Elbogen, psychiatry professor at Duke University and clinical psychologist for more than 30 years, spoke about his research at the intersection of law and mental health. He talked about how violence is often instinctively — in people’s minds and media reports after a notable shooting — linked to mental illness, “but the vast majority of people with mental illness are peaceful and nonviolent.”
A year ago, Elbogen said, someone in Texas took hostages at a synagogue. In the first 24 hours, news outlets were reporting his brother had indicated he had mental health issues — but the person actually had a criminal record selling drugs, and extremist and angry views, which is not the same as mental illness. By the time the details came to light, people were not paying attention to the story.
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Milwaukee PD employee’s crisis shines a light on mental health, criminal justice system failing
Ashley Peck, a 911 dispatcher employed by the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD), sat beside her attorney, waiting anxiously for a judge to call her name. Peck was in court on Jan. 4 charged with felony injury to a police officer that occurred when she suffered a mental health crisis on Oct. 23, biting an officer sent to her home. When the judge finally called Peck’s name, confusion quickly spread from the bench to the gallery. Perplexed, Judge Maria Dorsey asked court staff, “you mean there’s no more felony?”
A prosecutor pulled Peck’s attorney, Travis Schwantes, into the hallway for a hurried conversation. The charges for injuring an officer had been downgraded to a misdemeanor charge for possessing a controlled substance. Schwantes re-entered the courtroom, shaking his head, and entered a not guilty plea.
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5 Takeaways From Our Investigation Into How Mississippi Counties Jail People for Mental Illness
For many people in Mississippi, the path to treatment for a serious mental illness may run through the local jail — even though they haven’t been charged with a crime.
In 2023, Mississippi Today and ProPublica investigated the practice of jailing people solely because they were waiting for mental health treatment provided through a legal process called civil commitment.
We found that people awaiting treatment were jailed without criminal charges at least 2,000 times from 2019 to 2022 in just 19 counties, meaning the statewide figure is almost certainly higher. Most of the jail stays we tallied lasted longer than three days, and about 130 were longer than 30 days.
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A Drug-Decriminalization Fight Erupts in Oregon
In the early months of the pandemic, joggers on the Bear Creek Greenway, in southern Oregon, began to notice tents cropping up by the path. The Greenway, which connects towns and parks along a tributary of the Rogue River, was beloved for its wetlands and for stands of oaks that attracted migrating birds. Now, as jobs disappeared and services for the poor shut down, it was increasingly a last-ditch place to live. Tents accumulated in messy clusters, where people sometimes smoked fentanyl, and “the Greenway” became a byword for homelessness and drug use. On a popular local Facebook page, one typical comment read, “Though I feel sorry for some of the people in that situation, most of them are just pigs.” In Medford, the largest city along the trail, police demolished encampments and ticketed people for sleeping rough.
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The Sunday Story: Mental Health Care Goes to Court
Last year, the homelessness rate in the U.S. was the highest ever recorded. The crisis is at its worst in California; more people live outside in California than anywhere else in the nation. California's Governor Gavin Newsom has pushed forward a package of reforms aimed to reduce homelessness, including CARE Court: a new type of court that's supposed to support people with serious mental health issues. The governor has made the rounds on local and national news pitching CARE Court as a solution to homelessness. But Anna Scott, a southern California reporter who's covered issues related to homelessness for KCRW, finds that there's a gap between how these courts are being sold and the reality. Today on The Sunday Story, Ayesha Rascoe and Anna Scott explore what this policy experiment in California can help us understand about the causes of and solutions to homelessness.
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