Decriminalizing Mental Illness
U.S. correctional institutions, local courts, and police officers frequently encounter people with untreated mental health disorders. Once incarcerated, individuals with mental illness tend to stay longer in jail and upon release are at a higher risk to incarceration than those without mental illness. Many communities have developed strategies to redirect people with mental illnesses away from the criminal justice system. These approaches can have long-lasting benefits such as reduction in inappropriate arrests and incarcerations, recidivism rates, and costs.
Judge Steven Leifman …