MENTALLY ILL IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Catalog description

Prerequisite: CRIM 1100; CRIM 2114; 2141; CRIM 2145.Open to juniors and seniors only.This capstone course will allow students to focus on the treatment of individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) through every stage of the criminal justice system. We will briefly discuss opinions about the sources of mental illness and how perceptions of how people should be treated changed throughout history. The course will also focus on the following: victimization and offending among people with mental illness; law enforcement responses to dealing with victims and offenders with SMI; competency to stand trial; mental health courts and diversion; the insanity defense; forcibly medicating defendants; the challenges of incarcerating people with SMI; and correctional programs to reduce recidivism.Faculty: C. TARTARO