Discuss the difficulties in supervising offenders who are mentally ill

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

There are more mentally ill people in prisons and jails than in mental health institutions. As a result of the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill and the lack of community mental health providers, indigent people with mental illnesses have limited resources and come to the attention of the criminal justice system. The cost of confining an inmate with a severe mental illness to special housing is 2.5 times greater than the cost for an inmate not on psychotropic medication. About 16% of all probationers and between 5% and 10% of parolees have mental health needs. Supervising these offenders poses a unique challenge because most correctional supervision officers do not have training in mental health or in psychiatric disorders.
Most people with mental illnesses are not violent or dangerous; they simply need help with getting to a psychiatrist, stabilizing on medication, and meeting their basic needs, such as needs for safety, food, and permanent housing. The long-term challenge may be convincing offenders with mental illness to remain on medication even though they report feeling better. People with severe mental disorders who go off their medications may eventually find themselves in jail or on probation because they will eventually draw attention to themselves. Some self-medicate with illegal drugs or turn to criminal activities to support a habit and are turned away from a resource-depleted mental health system.