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Communities to Offer Treatment, Job Placement, Housing, and Education to Non-Violent Mentally Ill Offenders

For Immediate Release
June 5, 2003
Contact: Amanda Flaig/Stephanie Whelpley, (202) 224-2315

At a press conference today, U.S. Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH), Chairman of the HELP Subcommittee on Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, announced the introduction of the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act of 2003, which would address the problem of disproportionate numbers of mentally ill individuals in the criminal justice system. The bill would provide incentives for the criminal justice, juvenile justice, mental health, and substance abuse treatment systems to work together at each level of government in establishing a network of services for the offender with mental illness.

“The bill is a unique approach to treating mentally ill offenders while reducing crime. It would not only promote public safety by helping curb the incidence of repeat offenders, but it also would promote public health by ensuring that those with a serious mental illness are treated as soon as possible, and as efficiently and effectively as possible, to stop the revolving door of arrest, release, and re-arrest,” said Senator DeWine.

The bill would create a new, five-year program of grants to states and localities, with grant funding authorized at $100 million in each of the next two years. The grants could be used to establish mental health courts, provide in-jail treatment and transitional services, as well as provide additional training for mental health personnel, police, judges, prosecutors, and corrections officials. The bill would provide incentives for the criminal justice, juvenile justice, mental health, and substance abuse treatment systems to work together at each level of government in establishing a network of services for the non-violent offender with mental illness.

The bill calls for- an Interagency Task Force to be established at the federal level. This task force would include the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, along with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the Commissioner of Social Security. The Task Force would be charged with identifying and implementing ways these departments can work together to adopt policies that are consistent and responsive to the needs of mentally ill adults and juveniles.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, over 16 percent of adults incarcerated in U.S. jails and prisons have a mental illness. In addition, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention reports that over 20 percent of youth in the juvenile justice system have serious mental health problems, and a significant number have co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders.

“We appreciate the leadership of Senator DeWine and Representative Strickland on improved collaboration, mental health care and public safety, said Mike Hogan, Director of Ohio Department of Mental Health. “Our experience in Ohio is that community collaborations can improve both mental health care and public safety. But national leadership and support are needed. This bill is a great example of that leadership.”

During his time as a prosecutor in Greene County, Ohio, DeWine recognized the need to address the challenge presented by mentally ill non-violent offenders in the criminal court system. Senator DeWine brought his expertise to Washington and on November 13, 2000, the President signed into law Senator DeWine’s America’s Law Enforcement and Mental Health Project (S.1865), which authorized grants to states for the creation of 100 mental health courts during a four-year period. In Ohio, there are currently three counties that have mental health courts: Hamilton County, Butler County, and Summit County.

The bipartisan bill is cosponsored by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Charles Grassley (R-IA). U.S. Representative Ted Strickland (D-OH) is introducing the bill in the House.