tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post4179247682393695416..comments2024-03-25T20:06:39.794-05:00Comments on Grits for Breakfast: Texas Solicitor General: 'A great many people' suffer from mental illness in prisonGritsforbreakfasthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-26001055073453560082007-04-22T04:27:00.000-05:002007-04-22T04:27:00.000-05:00You might want to refer to Saldano v State.Does th...You might want to refer to Saldano v State.<BR/><BR/>Does the Great State of Texas have a Solicitor General?Jaime KenedeƱohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12787459880135027366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-20242397946098074562007-04-20T21:09:00.000-05:002007-04-20T21:09:00.000-05:00I think there is some confusion...12:16. 97% of t...I think there is some confusion...12:16. 97% of the mentally ill are not in prison, rather of the mentally ill who are in institutions 97% are in prison as compared to a mental hospital. Yes, we thought it was a great idea to throw open the gates back in the 70's (after the abuse at Rusk State Hospital) and somehow the community was unable to provide the necessary supports (maybe they were never there or never funded)...Sounds a little like what is happening now with TYC...we will see the consequences of this "great reform." Speaking of great reform isn't all this stuff just normal standards of practice in other states and hasn't Central Office been lobbying the legislature regarding most of these things for the past 10 years...ever since the policies of W and Perry tripled the size of TYC and then they cut the budget two years ago?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-77965319306114115822007-04-20T12:28:00.000-05:002007-04-20T12:28:00.000-05:00Thanks, Patrick - At least one big, obvious differ...Thanks, Patrick - At least one big, obvious difference is that today's prisons are full of black men and the mental hospitals of the 40s and 50s were full of white women. I agree there's certainly more to consider in comparing historical epochs than just broad brush stats. But the fact that 30% of today's Texas INMATES are prior clients of the indigent mental health system to me does imply such a "catcall solution" is in play." best,Gritsforbreakfasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10152152869466958902noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-6402090730722344012007-04-20T12:16:00.000-05:002007-04-20T12:16:00.000-05:00WOW! Interesting statistics - 97% of mentally ill ...WOW! Interesting statistics - 97% of mentally ill in prison. That doesn't say much for advances in the Science of Psychiatry. And don't even start on social policy!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8597101.post-48851116199467828872007-04-20T12:12:00.000-05:002007-04-20T12:12:00.000-05:00I think you'll want to have a look at Bernard Harc...I think you'll want to have a look at Bernard Harcourt's work at the University of Chicago. His analysis about changes over time in institutionalization is very complex. I think it is fair to say, based on Harcourt's research, that we haven't just shifted the same population out of mental health services and into prisons. There's a bit more nuance required here, as it has much to do with who was in the mental health institutions and who is now in prisons. Without the nuanced detail it's impossible to figure out the way in which we now use prisons as "catcall solutions to manage social problems." (The quote is from Ruth Wilson Gilmore, _Golden Gulag_.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com