The Criminal/Legal Experiences of Individuals with Mental Illness along the Sequential Intercept Model: An Eight-Site Study

Abstract

Studies suggest that up to 44% of individuals in the criminal/legal system have a severe mental illness (SMI), and although diversion programs have been established, a significant portion still end up incarcerated. The Sequential Intercept Model is a framework designed to reduce the overrepresentation of individuals with SMI in the criminal/legal system by identifying points of interception to prevent individuals from entering or moving further into the system. Although studies assess programs in each intercept, none has evaluated how individuals process through all intercepts. Using data from eight counties (N = 1,160), this exploratory study assesses criminal/legal involvement across each intercept between individuals identified with (n = 880) or without (n = 280) SMI. Findings indicate longer stays in jail, low rates of treatment engagement and enrollment in specialty courts, and poorer diversion outcomes for individuals with SMI. Recommendations for research, policies, and practices are proposed to advance Smart Decarceration efforts.

Keywords

severe mental illness Sequential Intercept Model Smart Decarceration diversion

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Abramson

(1972). The criminalization of mentally disordered behavior: Possible side-effect of a new mental health law. Psychiatric Services, 23(4), 101–105. https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.23.4.101

Abreu

Parker

Noether

Steadman

Case

(2017). Revising the paradigm for jail diversion for people with mental and substance use disorders: Intercept 0. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 35(5–6), 380–395. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsl.2300

Appelbaum

(2015). “Boarding” psychiatric patients in emergency rooms: One court says “no more.” Psychiatric Services, 66(7), 668–670. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.660707

Belenko

(2001). Research on Drug Courts: A critical review 2001 update. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. https://www.centeronaddiction.org/download/file/fid/1169

Bronson

Berzofsky

(2017). Indicators of mental health problems reported by prisoners and jail inmates, 2011–12. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/imhprpji1112.pdf

Clark

(2004). Non-specialty first appearance court models for diverting persons with mental illness: Alternatives to mental health courts. Pretrial Services Resource Center. http://www.pacenterofexcellence.pitt.edu/documents/Non-Specialty%20First%20Appearance%20Court%20Models.pdf

Cohen

Yang

(2019). Judicial politics and sentencing decisions. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 11(1), 160–191.

Comartin

Swanson

Kubiak

(2020). Police utilization of crisis centers: The impact of Crisis Intervention Teams training. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 35(2), 241–260. https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986219836595

Council of State Governments. (2012). Improving outcomes for people with mental illnesses involved with New York City’s criminal court and correction systems. www.nyc.gov/html/doc/downloads/pdf/press/FINAL_NYC_Report_12_22_2012.pdf

10.

Crawford

Brown

(2002). “Like a friend going round”: Reducing the stigma attached to mental healthcare in rural communities. Health & Social Care in the Community, 10(4), 229–238. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2524.2002.00362.x

11.

Draine

Herman

(2007). Critical time intervention for reentry from prison for persons with mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 58(12), 1577–1581. https://10.1176/ps.2007.58.12.1577

12.

Draine

Wolff

Jacoby

Hartwell

Duclos

(2005). Understanding community re-entry of former prisoners with mental illness: A conceptual model to guide new research. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 23(5), 689–707. https://doi.org/10.1002/bsl.642

13.

Engel

Silver

(2001). Policing mentally disordered suspects: A reexamination of the criminalization hypothesis. Criminology, 39(2), 225–252. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-9125.2001.tb00922.x

14.

Eno Louden

O’Manchak

Connor

Skeem

(2015). Applying the Sequential Intercept Model to reduce recidivism among probationers and parolees with mental illness. In Griffin

Heilbrun

Mulvey

DeMatteo

Schubert

(Eds.), The Sequential Intercept Model: Promoting community alternatives for individuals with serious mental illness (pp. 118–136). Oxford University Press.

15.

Eno Louden

Skeem

(2011). Parolees with mental disorder: Toward evidence-based practice. Bulletin of the Center for Evidence-Based Corrections, 7(1), 1–9. https://ucicorrections.seweb.uci.edu/files/2013/06/Parolees-with-Mental-Disorder.pdf

16.

Fazel

Hayes

Bartellas

Clerici

Trestman

(2016). Mental health of prisoners: Prevalence, adverse outcomes, and interventions. The Lancet Psychiatry, 3(9), 871–881. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(16)30142-0

17.

Ford

(2015). First-episode psychosis in the criminal justice system: Identifying a critical intercept for early intervention. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 23(3), 167–175. https://doi.org/10.1097/HRP.0000000000000066

18.

Geller

Curtis

(2011). A sort of homecoming: Incarceration and the housing security of urban men. Social Science Research, 40(4), 1196–1213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2011.03.008

19.

Griffin

Heilbrun

Mulvey

DeMatteo

Schubert

(Eds.) (2015). The Sequential Intercept Model and criminal justice: Promoting community alternatives for individuals with serious mental illness. Oxford University Press.

20.

Harrison

Curtis

Cousins

Spybrook

(2017). Integrated dual disorder treatment implementation in a large state sample. Community Mental Health Journal, 53, 358–366. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-016-0019-1

21.

Hawken

Kleiman

(2009). Managing drug involved probationers with swift and certain sanctions: Evaluating Hawaii’s HOPE (Report no. 229023). U.S. Department of Justice. https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/229023.pdf

22.

Heilbrun

DeMatteo

Strohmaier

Galloway

(2015). The movement toward community-based alternatives to criminal justice involvement and incarceration for people with severe mental illness. In Griffin

Heilbrun

Mulvey

DeMatteo

Schubert

(Eds.), The Sequential Intercept Model: Promoting community alternatives for individuals with serious mental illness (pp. 1–20). Oxford University Press.

23.

Hughes

Wilson

(2003). Reentry trends in the United States. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics. https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/reentry.pdf

24.

Kaeble

Cowhig

(2018). Correctional populations in the United States, 2016. Bureau of Justice Statistics. https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/cpus16.pdf

25.

Kessler

Andrews

Colpe

Hiripi

Mroczek

Normand

Zaslavsky

(2002). Short screening scales to monitor population prevalences and trends in non-specific psychological distress. Psychological Medicine, 32(6), 959–976. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291702006074

26.

Kessler

Barker

Colpe

Epstein

Gfroerer

Hiripi

Zaslavsky

(2003). Screening for serious mental illness in the general population. Archives of General Psychiatry, 60, 184–189. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.60.2.184

27.

Kilbourne

Elwy

Sales

Atkins

(2017). Accelerating research impact in a learning health care system: VA’s quality enhancement research initiative in the choice act era. Medical Care, 55(7 Suppl. 1), S4–S12. https://doi.org/10.1097/MLR.0000000000000683

28.

Kubiak

Beeble

Bybee

(2009). Using the K6 to assess the mental health of jailed women. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 48, 296–313. https://doi.org/10.1080/10509670902849038

29.

Kubiak

Beeble

Bybee

(2010). Testing the validity of the K6 in detecting major depression and PTSD among jailed women. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 37(1), 64–80. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854809348139

30.

Kubiak

Comartin

Hanna

Swanson

(2020). Identification, referral, and services for individuals with serious mental illness in jail: The role of corrections officers. Journal of Correctional Health Care, 26(2), 168–182.

31.

Lamberti

Deem

Weisman

LaDuke

(2011). The role of probation in forensic assertive community treatment. Psychiatric Services, 62(4), 418–421. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.62.4.418

32.

Lim

Seligson

Parvez

Luther

Mavinkurve

Binswanger

Kerker

(2012). Risks of drug-related death, suicide, and homicide during the immediate post-release period among people released from New York City jails, 2001–2005. American Journal of Epidemiology, 175(6), 519–526. https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwr327

33.

Linhorst

Dirks-Linhorst

McGraugh

Choate

Riley

(2018). A comparison of defendants with mental illness represented by public defenders and private attorneys: An analysis of court-ordered pretrial psychiatric evaluations. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 43(4), 810–830. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-017-9430-6

34.

Liu

Redlich

(2015). Intercept 3: Jails and courts. In Griffin

Heilbrun

Mulvey

DeMatteo

Schubert

(Eds.), The Sequential Intercept Model: Promoting community alternatives for individuals with serious mental illness (pp. 78–94). Oxford University Press.

35.

Munetz

Griffin

(2006). Use of the Sequential Intercept Model as an approach to decriminalization of people with serious mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 57(4), 544–549. https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.2006.57.4.544

36.

National GAINS Center. (2007). Practical advice on jail diversion: Ten years of learning on jail diversion from the CMHS National Gains Center. http://www.pacenterofexcellence.pitt.edu/documents/PracticalAdviceOnJailDiversion.pdf

37.

Osher

King

(2015). Intercept 4: Reentry from jails and prisons. In Griffin

Heilbrun

Mulvey

DeMatteo

Schubert

(Eds.), The Sequential Intercept Model: Promoting community alternatives for individuals with serious mental illness (pp. 95–117). Oxford University Press.

38.

Osher

Steadman

H. J.

Barr

(2003). A best practice approach to community reentry from jails for inmates with co-occurring disorders: The APIC model. Crime & Delinquency, 49(1), 79–96. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011128702239237

39.

Peterson

Skeem

Hart

Vidal

Keith

(2010). Analyzing offense patterns as a function of mental illness to test the criminalization hypothesis. Psychiatric Services, 61(12), 1217–1222. https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.2010.61.12.1217

40.

Pettus-Davis

Epperson

(2015). From mass incarceration to Smart Decarceration. American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare. https://grandchallengesforsocialwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/WP4-with-cover.pdf

41.

Reuland

Yasuhara

(2015). Law enforcement and emergency services. In Griffin

Heilbrun

Mulvey

DeMatteo

Schubert

(Eds.), The Sequential Intercept Model: Promoting community alternatives for individuals with serious mental illness (pp. 40–56). Oxford University Press.

42.

Rotter

McQuistion

H. L.

Broner

Steinbacher

(2005). The impact of the “incarceration culture” on reentry for adults with mental illness: A training and group treatment model. Psychiatric Services, 56, 265–267. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.56.3.265

43.

The Sentencing Project. (2018). Trends in US corrections. https://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Trends-in-US-Corrections.pdf

44.

Smith

Schmidt

Allensworth-Davies

Saitz

(2009). Primary care validation of a single-question alcohol screening test. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 24(7), 783–788. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-009-0928-6

45.

Smith

Schmidt

Allensworth-Davies

Saitz

(2010). A single-question screening test for drug use in primary care. Archives of Internal Medicine, 170(13), 1155–1160. https://doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2010.140

46.

Steadman

(1992). Boundary spanners: A key component for the effective interactions of the justice and mental health systems. Law and Human Behavior, 16(1), 75–87. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02351050

47.

Steadman

Osher

Robbins

Case

Samuels

(2009). Prevalence of serious mental illness among jail inmates. Psychiatric Services, 60(6), 761–765. https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.2009.60.6.761

48.

Steadman

Redlich

Callahan

Robbins

Vesslinov

(2011). Effect of mental health courts on arrests and jail days. Archives of General Psychiatry, 68(2), 162–172. https://doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2010.134

49.

Swartz

Lurigio

(2007). Serious mental illness and arrest: The generalized mediating effect of substance use. Crime & Delinquency, 53(4), 581–604. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011128706288054

50.

U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development. (2005). Making the most of HMIS data: A guide to understanding homelessness and improving programs in your community. https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/MakeTheMostOfHMISData.pdf

51.

Vogel

Noether

Steadman

(2007). Preparing communities for re-entry of offenders with mental illness: The ACTION approach. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 45(1–2), 167–188. https://doi.org/10.1300/J076v45n01_12

52.

Wood

Beierschmitt

(2014). Beyond police crisis intervention: Moving “upstream” to manage cases and places of behavioral health vulnerability. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 37(5), 439–447. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2014.02.016

53.

Ziller

Anderson

Coburn

(2010). Access to rural mental health services: Service use and out-of-pocket costs. The Journal of Rural Health, 26(3), 214–224. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-0361.2010.00291.x