Persuasive Essay On Mental Illness

As a whole, literature on the topic of mental illness in our country and specifically in our criminal justice system had a reoccurring theme. There are millions of individuals who suffer from mental illness but are improperly being handled through the criminal justice system. These individuals are deemed criminal just by their acts and their mental health state is not overly examine. Jails and prisons are being overcrowded. State prisons and jails are overpopulated anywhere from 15 to 32% (Spending Money in All the Wrong Places: Jails & Prisons).

What is a mental illness? Mental illnesses are disturbed thoughts, feelings, and moods that affect people’s daily functioning. Being hospitalized for having a mental illness is categorized as voluntary or involuntary where voluntary hospitalization is agreeing to be admitted to the hospital for treatment; while involuntary hospitalization is against a person’s will when he or she is harmful to him or her-self or others (NAMI). The issue with involuntary hospitalization is that is it permissible to admit someone to the hospital against his or her will. For instance, in a suicide case, those who agree to involuntary hospitalization would argue that it is a “way to uphold the right to self-determination” and an action to prevent other

The United States criminal justice system has been continuously increasing incarceration among individuals who suffer from a sever mental illness. As of 2007 individuals with severe mental illness were over twice as likely to be found in prisons than in society (National Commission of Correctional Health Care, 2002, as cited in Litschge &Vaughn, 2009). The offenses that lead to their commitment in a criminal facility, in the majority of cases, derive from symptoms of their mental illness instead of deviant behavior. Our criminal justice system is failing those who would benefit more from the care of a psychiatric rehabilitation facility or psychiatric hospital by placing them in correctional facilities or prisons.

Though the mentally ill believe that they deserve to have their health record reversed by the

"Jails and prisons hold three times as many mentally ill people as mental health hospitals" (“Mentally Ill Prisoners”). This horrifying statistic directly reflects the mistreatment and inequity faced by the mentally ill in society, and speaks on behalf of the “356,000 inmates with serious mental illness in jails and state prisons” in the United States (How Many Individuals). Mentally ill inmates are not only often unfairly sentenced for non-violent crimes, but they are commonly mistreated by prison staff, deprived of proper treatment for their illnesses, and ultimately their stay only worsens their condition, leading to their speedy return to the system upon the expiration of their sentences. The sheer number of people with mental illnesses

Many cultures have viewed mental illness as a form of religious punishment or demonic possession. In Ancient Greek and Roman writings mental illness was categorized as a religious or personal problem. Individuals who are mentally ill are once again being mistreated by society and being place in prison. Prison is not a place for people for are mentally ill, jails were created as a form of criminal punishment for offenders and not a home for people who are mentally ill. In many cases, the welfare of offenders are not acknowledged because their is a misconception that all people with mental disabilities are a danger to the public. People become a greater threat to themselves that others when they are not receiving the appropriate care. Providing

Many people do not understand the seriousness of having a mental disorder. Society does not deal with mental illnesses correctly. People do not see anything wrong with putting these sick people in jail. If more time and effort went into the prevention and earlier diagnosis of these disorders, we could completely avoid the controversial topic of whether or not those with mental illnesses should be put in prison. In

According to Skeem et al. (2010), there is a semblance of more willingness to intervene in the case of according parole in the United States, in the absence of a new misdeed and continue with a breach charge, thereby preventing a perceived recurrence. However, individuals with mental illness alone in British Columbia are not more likely to be charged with offenses related to administration compared to their counterparts without a diagnosed mental illness. By contrast, those with a substance abuse condition in addition to a mental disorder are more likely to face administrative charges. With regards to arrests, there is a suggestion that the police are more likely to arrest a person on the suspicion of a mental disorder. It should also be noted that when an arrest is made on a suspect with mental disorder, there is more application of

Some mental health patients do not seek help for their issues, and the ones who do they don’t take their medicine to get better. There are cases where mental health patients have commit crimes and were sent to prison or to a mental facility for further help. The number of persons with mental illness in U.S. jails continues to grow. Currently the prevalence of active serious mental illness among inmates admitted to U.S. jails is about 7 percent, which means that nearly 700,000 persons with active symptoms of severe mental illness are admitted to jails annually.

According to Bureau of Justice Statistics, 75% of females and 63% of males in local jails have suffered from mental illness. This means most criminals are dealing with serious mental health issues and aren’t getting the help they need. Thus, leading them to commit unlawful crimes. They are mentally ill and are committing these crimes due to the fact that they aren’t receiving treatment and aren’t being assisted. Additionally, many times when people are diagnosed, they often reject a professional’s diagnosis and treatment. They feel as though they are mentally healthy, and the thoughts they think and decisions they make aren’t unethical or immoral. This mentality stems from the ignorance common people have on mental illness. When these people

“Mental illness refers to a wide range of mental health conditions such as disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behavior.(Mental Health Conditions.)” Examples of a mental illness include depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, eating disorders and addictive behaviors. Mentally ill individuals, who are convicted of nonviolent crimes, should be kept out of jails because most jails do not have the resources to treat the conditions most suffer from, secondly improper treatment causes their mental states to worsen, lastly mentally ill inmates need resources and those resources come at a price which means that they are more expensive to have incarcerated than inmates who do not suffer from a mental

Those who are diagnosed with severe mental illness should not be incarcerated for their illegal actions but instead mandated to rehabilitative and psychiatric programs.

This article talks about how mental illness isn’t directly related to criminal activity or violence as much as one might think. But, the writer does looks at trying to understand people with mental illnesses and criminal activity and violence can be related because to understand that then the policies can be changed to be more affective for the institutions and the individuals with the mental ill. New policies aren’t the only thing that has to change for people with mental illnesses in prisons and jails because that has a limited reach. There are 5 aspects that can make mentally ill prisoners better: increase and improve

Just as any other organ of the body can get sick and damaged, the brain can too. Mental illnesses can be chronic and cause severe, life changing consequences. Serious mental illness diagnoses, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, can involve psychosis- losing touch with reality in the form of hallucinations- and personality swings. When untreated, serious mental illness can cloud the judgement of the affected person and cause them to act in a way they normally would not. Seriously mentally ill (SMI) people who have committed a crime cannot escape the justice system but cannot be held fully accountable for their actions. Whether to put SMI criminals in prison or psychiatric hospitals is a prominent question that has caused much debate.

Almost every day in the news there are many disturbing stories of individuals carrying out acts that would lead a rational thinking individual to believe, that, the offender suffered from a mental illness. This article Behavioral health behind bars and beyond By Andis Robeznieks (2015), believes that individuals with mental illness who commit crimes should be institutionalized where they can receive the appropriate treatment rather that jailed. Random acts of face slashing, subway pushing, cops being shot and many other senseless incidents can be prevented if individuals, who were known to have histories of violence where better monitored. I am not fully persuaded by this article and would need more information about whether