Mentally Ill Prisoners in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation: Strategies for Improving Treatment and Reducing Recidivism
42 Pages Posted: 3 Apr 2007 Last revised: 26 Oct 2009
Date Written: January 27, 2006
Abstract
The California state prison system is proving ill-equipped to deal with the state's mentally ill prisoner population. This paper examines the ways in which mentally ill felons are not receiving adequate care while in prison as well as appropriate preparation for life after their release. The paper argues that the result is an avoidable drain on the state's budget as well as unnecessarily high recidivism rates for this population. Accordingly, constructive policy recommendations for ameliorating this shortcoming of the prison system are proposed.
Keywords: mental health, mental illness, prison, parole, recidivism
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