Prison Recidivism

The shift from deinstitutionalization to criminalization for mentally ill offenders has further added to the complexities occurring within United States prison system. The number of mentally ill inmates has continued to increase significantly as public psychiatric hospitals have continued to close. In addition to overcrowding, budget constraints and allegations of mistreatment among inmates with psychiatric disorders correctional facilities have been given the task of providing treatment to the large percentage of inmates with serious mental illnesses. A recent study found that over one million offenders diagnosed with a serious mental illness are under “correctional supervision” and these offenders are highly more likely to be rearrested
Mistreatment from other inmates or staff, not having access to medication, or self-medicating with illicit drugs in prison causes “deterioration of mental state.” (Nadeau, 2007) This is one of the reasons that policy makers have become increasingly interested in assessing case management as an intervention to recidivism for offenders with serious mental illnesses. Jacoby & Ventura (1998) found that case management for mentally ill offenders during and after incarceration contributed to “significantly lower” rates of recidivism. The rate of recidivism was only reduced when study participants received case management in jail and after. There was not a reduction in recidivism for those that only participated in treatment while incarcerated. Further, length and intensity of case management services was also correlated with lower recidivism rates among offenders with serious mental illnesses. Higher hours of case management services and longer lengths of time receiving case management services led to lower rates of recidivism. In juvenile detention centers, case management services and aftercare have also been linked to lower recidivism rates. (Chapman, Desai, Goulet, Hoge, Migdole, Robbins, 2006) Substance abuse, however, was found to be a major factor in recidivism among juveniles. (Creemer, Hoeve, Van der Put, 2013) Therefore, when assessing the types of aftercare services that would be most
In their study, they saw that the lack of adequate support systems and “lack of access to treatment, employment, housing, and social services” were contributing factors to recidivism. The research measured recidivism rates among 30 mentally ill offenders at King County Correctional Facility. Based on the results of the study, they found that a large number of recidivating offenders had a community psychiatric provider. Only 7 of those offenders were following treatment recommendations. Other studies have sought to assess factors that are associated with recidivism of offenders diagnosed with serious mental illnesses. A study by Harris, Quinsy & Rice (1993) on violent recidivism of mentally ill offenders found substantial differences between recidivists and non-recidivists in the areas of socioeconomic status and childhood aggression. Another major finding from their study was that “age and psychopathy” had an influence on violent recidivism. With the exception of psychopaths, the risk of reoffending decreased with