People With Mental Illness in the Criminal Justice System

Unique in its conceptualization, execution, and value to the reader, People With Mental Illness in the Criminal Justice System: Answering a Cry for Help is based upon thousands of letters sent to Dear Abby by mentally ill individuals and their families who have been involved with the criminal justice system. Selected stories were turned into case studies by the Committee on Psychiatry and the Community Committee Members of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, each designed to illustrate a specific type of clinical, programmatic, or systemic approach that can be utilized in any setting to help these individuals avoid unnecessary incarceration, receive appropriate interventions, and make progress toward recovery. Although psychiatrists and other mental health professionals will find the book relevant and engaging, it has been written at a level that the layperson can understand and includes a listing of criminal justice/mental health online resources indispensable to this audience, increasing its potential reach and thus its impact. Most important of all, People With Mental Illness in the Criminal Justice System: Answering a Cry for Help is an informed call for compassionate change and a prescription for advocacy for the mentally ill in the criminal justice setting.