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Characterizing Arrests and Charges Among Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses in Public-Sector Treatment
Michael T Compton1, JaShala Graves1, Adria Zern1
1Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York City (Compton, Zern, Pope); Gateway Behavioral Health Services, Savannah, Georgia (Graves, Anderson, Ellis); Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and St. Luke's/West Hospital Center, New York City (Pauselli); DeKalb Community Service Board, Atlanta (Ashekun, Langlois); Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee (Watson); Department of Criminal Justice, College of Liberal Arts, Temple University, Philadelphia (Wood).
Objective:
Individuals with serious mental illnesses are overrepresented in all facets of the legal system. State-level criminal histories of patients with serious mental illnesses were analyzed to determine the proportion who had been arrested and number of lifetime arrests and charges, associations of six variables with number of arrests, and the most common charges from individuals’ first two arrests and most recent two arrests.
Methods:
A total of 240 patients were recruited at three inpatient psychiatric facilities and gave consent to access their criminal history. Information was extracted from Record of Arrest and Prosecution (RAP) sheets for lifetime arrests in Georgia.
Results:
A total of 171 (71%) had been arrested. Their mean±SD lifetime arrests were 8.6±10.1, and mean lifetime charges were 12.6±14.6. In a Poisson regression, number of arrests was associated with lower educational attainment, Black or African American race, the presence of a substance use disorder, the presence of a mood disorder, and female sex. Common early charges included marijuana possession, driving under the influence of alcohol, and burglary and shoplifting. Common recent charges included probation violations, failure to appear in court, officer obstruction–related charges, and disorderly conduct.
Conclusions:
Findings point to a need for policy and program development in the legal system (e.g., pertaining to charges such as willful obstruction of an officer), the mental health community (e.g., to ensure that professionals know about clients’ legal involvement and can partner in strategies to reduce arrests), and social services sectors (to address charges, such as shoplifting, often related to material disadvantage).
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