Changing the Contours of the Criminal Justice System To Meet the Needs of Persons With Serious Mental Illness

Major changes in mental health policies and laws have placed untold numbers of persons with serious mental illness (PSMIs) in the community, where they receive inadequate or intermittent care, or no care at all. These changes have caused criminal justice professionals to become involved with PSMIs at every stage of the justice process. In this chapter, we explore the blurred boundaries between the criminal justice and mental health systems in the United States. We focus on the arrest, incarceration, and community supervision of PSMIs. We review research on the relationship between serious mental illness and violent crime and trace the historical developments that have apparently produced growth in the numbers of PSMIs in the criminal justice system. We also examine how the increased numbers of PSMIs have compelled criminal justice organizations to alter their policies, procedures, and relationships with mental health providers and to confront the difficulties that arise in initiating and sustaining those relationships.