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Half of U.S. Jail and Prison Inmates Have Mental Health Problems, New Study Finds

September 6, 2006 ― A new study published by the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) finds that more than half of all prison and jail inmates, including 56 percent of state prisoners, 45 percent of federal prisoners and 64 percent of local jail inmates, have a mental health problem.

The findings are based on a nationally representative sample of prisoners (in 2004) and jail inmates (in 2002). Approximately 14,500 state prisoners, 3,700 federal prisoners and 7,000 jail inmates completed face-to-face interviews. A less rigorous earlier study found mental health problems among 16 percent of state prisoners and local jail inmates and 7.4 percent of federal prisoners as of the end of 1998 (see the Bazelon Center’s Fact Sheet #3).

Despite differing survey methodologies, the new study suggests that the numbers have increased significantly, with serious implications for taxpayers and public safety and for the lives of the individuals and their families.

• While in the criminal justice system, prisoners seldom receive adequate treatment for mental illness.
• Many individuals with mental illnesses, lacking a connection to services that could reduce their chances of offending when released, cycle in and out of the correctional system.
• State agencies spend huge and increasing amounts of money to serve people with mental illnesses in the criminal justice system.

There is an overwhelming consensus among criminal justice and mental health professionals about the need for collaborative strategies to improve responses to people with mental illnesses who are involved in the criminal justice system. Approaches that work involve the type of system-wide collaboration and measures outlined in the 2002 Criminal Justice/Mental Health Consensus Project Report.

Legislative responses to date include the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act of 2004 (MIOTCRA), which authorized a $50 million federal grant program to fund state initiatives that aim to improve response to this population (see updated information in the Bazelon Center’s Mental Health Policy Reporter).

Innovative approaches around the country show encouraging results, but most are pilots and only serve a small fraction of people who need these services. Leadership and support are needed to take these initiatives to scale and continue efforts to improve collaboration between criminal justice and mental health systems.

The report, titled Mental Health Problems of Prison and Jail Inmates, is based on inmates’ reporting symptoms rather than an official diagnosis of a mental illness. The study determined the presence of mental health problems by asking prison and jail inmates about a recent history or symptoms of mental disorders that occurred in the last year.