Committee Backs Bills Aimed At Reducing Mentally Ill Population in Prison
"Sane" Criminals Will Stay Behind Bars; "Crazy" Criminals Will Get to Move Back into Our Neighborhoods?
       Members of the Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse endorsed two plans Monday aimed at reducing the number of mentally ill inmates in the state’s prisons. One bill (S 1153) would create a jail diversion program within the Department of Mental Health to steer those with mental illnesses out of the criminal justice system and into community based care. If approved by the Legislature, the program would be modeled after one used in the city of Framingham, which teams local police and psychiatrists, who respond to and evaluate offenders before they're arrested.
       Committee members also approved legislation (H 1609) filed by committee Chairwoman Rep. Ruth Balser establishing a special commission to decriminalize non-violent acts committed by the mentally ill.   The special commission would be responsible for making recommendations on the possible expansion of the Framingham Jail Diversion program to other cities and towns, the establishment of Mental Health Courts in Massachusetts, improvements to the mental health and substance abuse services provided within the prisons and jails, and improvements to the process of transitioning mentally ill persons from jail or prison into the community.
       Balser and other supporters maintain that providing treatment and services to those mentally-ill will reduce the recidivism rate. More than a quarter of nearly 10,000 state prisoners are receiving mental health services, including more than 60 percent of the female inmate population, according to the state Department of Corrections.