Crime, Punishment, and Mental Illness: Law and the Behavioral Sciences in Conflict (Critical Issues in Crime and Society)

Hundreds of thousands of the inmates who populate the nation's jails and prison systems today are identified as mentally ill. Many experts point to the deinstitutionalization of mental hospitals in the 1960s, which led to more patients living on their own, as the reason for this high rate of incarceration. But this explanation does not justify why our society has chosen to treat these people with punitive measures. In Crime, Punishment, and Mental Illness, Patricia E. Erickson and Steven K. Erickson explore how societal beliefs about free will and moral responsibility have shaped current policies and they identify the differences among the goals, ethos, and actions of the legal and health care systems. Drawing on high-profile cases, the authors provide a critical analysis of topics, including legal standards for competency, insanity versus mental illness, sex offenders, psychologically disturbed juveniles, the injury and death rates of mentally ill prisoners due to the inappropriate use of force, the high level of suicide, and the release of mentally ill individuals from jails and prisons who have received little or no treatment. In Crime, Punishment, And Mental Illness, Patricia E. Erickson And Steven K. Erickson Explore How Societal Beliefs About Free Will And Moral Responsibility Have Shaped Current Policies And They Identify The Differences Among The Goals, Ethos, And Actions Of The Legal And Health Care Systems. Drawing On High-profile Cases, The Authors Provide A Critical Analysis Of Topics, Including Legal Standards For Competency, Insanity Versus Mental Illness, Sex Offenders, Psychologically Disturbed Juveniles, The Injury And Death Rates Of Mentally Ill Prisoners Due To The Inappropriate Use Of Force, The High Level Of Suicide, And The Release Of Mentally Ill Individuals From Jails And Prisons Who Have Received Little Or No Treatment.--book Jacket. The Social Construction Of Mental Illness As A Criminal Justice Problem -- Systems Of Social Control: From Asylums To Prisons -- Competency To Stand Trial And Competency To Be Executed -- The Problems With The Insanity Defense: The Conflict Between Law And Psychiatry -- The Mad Or Bad Debate Concerning Sex Offenders -- Juvenile Offenders, Developmental Competency, And Mental Illness -- Criminalizing Mental Illness: Does It Matter? Patricia E. Erickson, Steven K. Erickson. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 195-209) And Index. Contents......Page 7 Preface......Page 9 Acknowledgments......Page 15 Chapter 1: The Social Construction of Mental Illness as a Criminal Justice Problem......Page 19 Chapter 2: Systems of Social Control: From Asylums to Prisons......Page 41 Chapter 3: Competency to Stand Trial and Competency to Be Executed......Page 68 Chapter 4: The Problems with the Insanity Defense: The Conflict Between Law and Psychiatry......Page 97 Chapter 5: The “Mad” or “Bad” Debate Concerning Sex Offenders......Page 133 Chapter 6: Juvenile Offenders, Developmental Competency, and Mental Illness......Page 153 Chapter 7: Criminalizing Mental Illness: Does It Matter?......Page 194 References......Page 213 Index......Page 229 About the Authors......Page 237