Wisconsin Lawyer
Vol. 81, No. 10, October 2008

Legal News & Trends

Mental-health initiative aims to improve Wisconsin's criminal justice system

Wisconsin recently was selected by the Council of State Governments to participate in the Chief Justices' Criminal Justice/Mental Health Leadership Initiative, a project aimed at improving the criminal justice system's response to people with mental illness.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson will chair a task force that will research and evaluate evidence-based intervention processes that can be implemented early in an effort to divert individuals with serious mental illness away from the costly criminal justice system and into the treatment system.

"Many inmates have mental illnesses, and to improve public safety, we need to improve treatment options for people with mental illnesses," says Abrahamson. "Doing so will not only improve public safety but also allow for more efficient use of taxpayer dollars. Improving the criminal justice system's response to people with mental illness may help ease jail and prison overcrowding and reduce recidivism rates."

According to a U.S. Department of Justice study, more than half of all prison inmates, including 56 percent of state prisoners, 45 percent of federal prisoners, and 64 percent of local jail inmates, reported having mental health problems. Wisconsin is no exception. These individuals sometimes leave and return to incarceration through a "revolving door" without getting treatment.

During the past 15 years, Wisconsin has experienced unprecedented growth in prison, jail, and community correction populations. The prison population has doubled during the past decade, and adult correctional facilities are operating over capacity. According to the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, county jails are being used for overflow of about 900 adult males.

Wisconsin Lawyer