Cannabis In Prisons

This paper explores the topic of mental health within prisons and how it affects the inmates. The report of my findings were through research of twelve articles, two credible website sources, and a published textbook.

Everyday correctional officials work to deal with mental health inmates. Often hotly debated, many search for ways to work with this growing population. Glaze and Bonczar (2009) estimate around 2.3 million people are incarcerated within the US and of those, 20 percent suffer from some form of mental disorder. Even with such a high number, the rate of mental illnesses within the prison system is on the climb. Many of these inmates will remain incarcerated and receive little to no treatment for their mental issues. This essay, will look at the practices associated when dealing with mental illness and discuss the strategies on dealing with this growing issue.

Across the United States and throughout the world there is an epidemic of epic proportion involving drug addiction. Here in North Carolina the majority of the Department of Corrections inmate population is known to have substance abuse problems. (Price, 62) Along with this epidemic is the growing problem of prison overcrowding. There is a correlation between the two. Many of today’s correctional facilities house inmates that have committed drug related crimes or crimes that they committed while under the influence. There is a solution that would help society and lessen the overcrowding of the penal system. The solution is to help those that are committing crimes because of an addiction disorder. There is viable evidence that this solution

According to a 2006 Bureau of Justice Statistics report found that over half of the inmates in both prisons and in jails had a problem concerning their mental health (James & Glaze, 2006). The estimates in this report were separated by federal prisons, which contained 45 percent of inmates suffering from mental illness, 56 percent in state prisons, and

Thousands of people are residing in United States prisons and jails, and they go untreated. The very institutions which confines offenders, creates people with mental illness and drug addictions disorders. Crime needs varying interventions targeting problem-specific areas due to numerous factors.

​Mental health disorders are a significant cause of morbidity in prisons across the United States (U.S). Deinstitutionalization of the state’s mental health system has turned prisons into America’s “new asylums”; it has become a warehouse for the mentally ill. Our U.S prison rehabilitative services are not equipped to provide care and psychological treatment for the mentally ill which allows for these mental illnesses to persist, worsen or even trigger new ones. It can even cause inmates to wind up back in prison upon release for minor offenses. In addition to the lack of resources for these mentally ill individuals, the prison environment also directly affects the mental

Mental illness is an issue that impacts all prison systems throughout the United States. The wellbeing of inmates is a long debated issue. There is much improvement that can be done in the prison systems to help rehabilitate and treat inmates while they are incarcerated to better prepare them for a successful reintegration into society. An examination of the current rehabilitation and treatment programs for inmates diagnosed with psychological illness will assist in identifying failures in within the program. Proper implementation of these services can improve an inmate’s chance of successfully reintegrating into society after incarceration and ultimately lower the cost of running a government funded prison. This essay will cover the prominence of mental illness in prison, drug treatment programs that are used to address mental illness in the prison system, continue assistance or continuation of programs for released inmates, the opportunities that exist for rehabilitation, and a proposal for a rehabilitation program. The purpose of the research is aimed at improving the circumstances of the inmates to receive assistance while incarcerated that they may not receive while free.

The drug court system diverts drug offenders into treatment rather than prison. Proper treatment and management for mentally ill offenders, rather than incarceration also reduces recidivism and prison population. In order to reduce prison populations and reduce recidivism rates in the US criminal justice system, non-violent drug offenders and those who are mentally ill need to receive treatment for their conditions rather than

The issue chosen by the researchers, is a relevant issue facing the criminal justice system. The predominance of mental health problems among incarcerated persons in both prisons and jails present major problems for each component of the criminal justice system; law enforcement, courts, and corrections. The entire criminal justice system is negatively impacted and overburdened by untreated mental illness. According to Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than half of all prison and jail inmates have a mental health problem (James & Glaze, 2006).

Many individuals in prison have mental health and addiction problems. The only way they can be helped is by our system offering lower-cost alternatives to incarceration to address the problem which led them to criminal activity. Studies have indicated that only 10% or fewer inmates received mental health care while incarcerated which in turn is costly and ineffective. Studies have shown it cost $1.8 billion to house mentally ill offenders whom return quickly to the correctional system because these systems lack aftercare planning and communities lack sufficient services to meet their needs. If correctional staff and programs in the community could expand services as well as provide better coordination then it could help stabilize mentally ill offenders in the community, cut down criminal activity and prevent the return to jail or prison. The more often an individual is incarcerated the more likely they are a substance abuser. Once the person is release from a lengthy sentence with no skills to address the addiction, it’s actually the same skills they had when entering the system. Its clear treatment is more effective because it has been proven that individuals will less likely be arrested, less likely to use drugs again as well as being more effective in reducing drug-related crime than incarceration (Reducing Recidivism by Expanding Funding for Alternatives to Incarceration, 2011).

There are several approaches to integrate substance abuse treatment into the criminal justice process such as treatment while under drug court supervision, while in prison followed by community-based treatment, or as a condition of parole or probation. The Florida State prison system offers four types of treatment during incarceration, intensive outpatient, residential therapeutic community, transitional re-entry programs, work release center outpatient and after-care services, and outpatient, non-secure and secure community corrections SUD treatment programs (FDLE, 2013). However, due to lack of availability and limited financial support program efficacy remains highly questionable (FDLE, 2013). In general, currently

McGrath, J., Welham, J., Scott, J., Varghese, D., Degenhardt, L., & Hayatbakhsh, M. et al. (2010). Association Between Cannabis Use and Psychosis-Related Outcomes Using Sibling Pair Analysis in a Cohort of Young Adults. Arch Gen Psychiatry, 67 (5), 440. http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2010.6

Overcrowding prison has become a huge problem within the United States, which lead to seeking in alternative options. Since there isn’t enough space or resources applicable to provide for all those who are diagnosed with mental issues, a shift to community supervision have taken place; probation and parole being the greatest form of supervision. The National Institute of Corrections continues to state how parole and probation are overrepresentation of those who are mentally ill, with rates two to four times greater than the general population. Even with this being true, the combination of the cost of imprisonment, treatment needs and

My proposition to decrease some of the prevalence and our facility’s recidivism is to promote mental health and education on mental illness and continuity of care. I believe mental health promotion will increase our population’s awareness of signs and symptoms to reach out for help when needed and by receiving continuity of care, this population won’t suffer as much when released. Promoting wellness can reduce illness (Cloninger, Zohar, & Cloninger, 2010). Psychiatric care to promote well-being reduces the stigma and increases recovery of mental health. Therefore, mental health care appears to be more effective than mental illness care (Cloninger, Zohar, & Cloninger, 2010) Mental Health Promotion when patients arrive at the jail and

Is there a crime shown? What type of crime (from Module 6) would it be? Why?