Prepared Statement by Chris Koyanagi, Policy Director
at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law,
on Criminalization of People with Mental Illnesses
Today's hearing highlights an issue of critical importance to people
with mental illnesses—their increasing criminalization, all too often
the result of their inability to access mental health services.
People with mental illnesses are significantly more likely than others
to be arrested when they come in contact with the police—almost twice
as likely, according to a Chicago study of thousands of police encounters.
Some are arrested for behavior that results from inadequate treatment
for their illness. Others are detained because they have nowhere to go
but the streets, and law enforcement officers know of no refuge for them
but jail.
Currently, more than 16% of adults in jail or prison and 20% of youth
in the juvenile justice system have a mental illness, according to the
Bureau of Justice Statistics. This is a testament to just how little America
has done to provide appropriate service for adults and children with mental
disorders.
Our country is punishing people with mental illnesses for the failure
of the mental health system. We used to warehouse people with mental disorders
in large state institutions. Today, increasingly, we simply incarcerate
them in jail.
We must reverse this trend. This means forging a new and continuing
coordination between criminal justice and mental health agencies. It
will
also require improved training of law enforcement officials to recognize
and respond appropriately to people with mental illnesses, expanded options
for jail diversion and adequate planning and community support for inmates
with mental illnesses when they are released.
In the long term, we must slow the tide of people with mental illnesses
who end up in the criminal justice system. We can do this only if we
ensure
access to mental health treatment, adequate housing, vocational help
and the other forms of social support necessary for someone with a
mental illness to lead an independent and dignified life.
People should not have to end up in court to get the help they need. -30-
The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law is the leading
national legal-advocacy organization representing people with mental illness
or mental retardation. Through precedent-setting litigation and in the
public-policy arena, the center works to define and uphold the rights
of adults and children who rely on public services and ensure them equal
access to health and mental health care, education, housing and employment.
The nonprofit organization is supported primarily by private foundations
and individuals.
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