Killings Loom Over Debate on Treating Mentally Ill

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Chapter 3

This activity contains 3 questions.

How has the criminal justice system supplemented the mental health system in 'protecting' and 'treating' the mentally ill?

"...proponents have pushed the laws as a pragmatic approach to the mentally ill who fall through the cracks of the mental health system, particularly those who have committed no crime but could harm themselves or others as their sickness worsens. These mentally ill people often do not need to be in a hospital, but do need to stick to treatment, which could include medication, therapy or both.""...provide(s) another tool to help the severely mentally ill.""...provide(s) another tool to help the severely mentally ill."

What does the empirical evidence suggest regarding the effectiveness of the involuntary outpatient treatment law for the mentally ill?

Reviewing information from case managers from 1999 to 2004, the New York Office of Mental Health said people ordered into treatment under the law committed fewer crimes and were less likely to end up homeless or in psychiatric hospitals or harm themselves or others."A little over one-third of the 10,000 cases referred to court, most of them in New York City, resulted in forced outpatient treatment, according to the report, which Gov. George E. Pataki cited in declaring Kendra's law a success."...Harvey Rosenthal, executive director of the New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services...cited a report by a legal advocacy group, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, which asserted that blacks were five times as likely as whites to face court orders. In addition, he said, counties have unevenly applied the law, skewing the results of the study.

What challenges do/have states face(d) in implementing involuntary outpatient treatment laws?

...opponents said New Mexico already had an underfinanced mental health treatment system that could frustrate even those who sought treatment voluntarily. There already are long waits for treatment here,"...state would still face challenges in providing treatment for people forced into treatment. New Mexico has a shortage of doctors and mental health professionals, she said, and the state's rural nature often means patients have long drives to few clinics.""...California. Three years after adopting an outpatient treatment law, none of its counties, which are charged with carrying it out, have found the money or will to put it into practice."

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