In a 2,700-word report, the Washington Post (8/18, McCrummen) profiles the workings of the mental health court that operates in Upper Marlboro in Maryland’s Prince George’s County, “one of a growing number of such courts.” The Post says the latest Federal data show more than half the inmates in jails and prisons suffer from signs of mental illness, and the court system is “adjusting to this reality” with about 300 specialized courts that try to match appropriate solutions from “a decentralized and often inadequate mental-health-care system” with people who often have “a tapestry of problems.” Partly because of the potential for violence, Judge Patrice E. Lewis often makes decisions that make “her pray she was right” in the Upper Marlboro court.
Related Links:
— “Pr. George’s mental health court aims to treat, rather than jail, defendants, “Stephanie McCrummen, The Washington Post, August 17, 2013.