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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 20, 2006)
illf ^Jorthxnb (©bseruer Page A4 September 20. 2006 Opinion articles do not necessarily reflect or represent the views o f The Portland Observer O pinion No Treatment for Mental Illness MIRROR, « MIRROR OH THE. WAW » ViHO's THE MoST STRIOfeKT OFTHEM'AW? rriim jte m irim e d ia erg ? *8 ST System fails to reach people by Ji im . e G reg M athis U ntreated, mood ex trem es such as bipolar disorder can lead to vio lent and som etim es crim i nal behavior. Knowing this, it’s no surprise that over half of the men and women in A m erica’s jails and prisons are mentally ill. Instead o f necessary treat ment, these men and women - most o f them o f color - get jail time. Given the rising prison popu lation and the societal costs to imprison men and women, it’s time the justice system treat, not incarcerate mentally ill offend ers. These individuals can, with the proper therapy and m edica tion, be rehabilitated. The gov ernment just has to be willing to make the investment. According to a study released by the U.S. Department o f Jus tice, 56-percent of state inmates, 45-percent o f federal prisoners and 64-percent o f those in local jails are mentally ill.lncarcerated su rv e y o f the n a tio n ’s p ris o n s and jails will show that most inmates d o n 't have a high school diplom a. Statistics show mentally ill, wealthy whites are directed to treatm ent cen ters or are incarcerated in fa cilities that provide com pre hensive therapy when they are arrested. But most other A m eri cans are sent to jails where they not only do not receive the mental health counseling they need, their needs are ignored altogether. This lack of treatment makes for a volatile prison situation: Mentally ill prisoners are more likely to get into fights, making jails unsafe environm ents for inmates and staff alike. Providing treatm ent before in c a rc e ra tio n is c ru c ia l to c u rb in g v io le n c e - on our streets and in our ja ils - and for reducing the overall prison kJ Providing treatment before incarceration is crucial to curbing violence - on our streets and in our jails. women tend to have higher rates o f mental illness than men. W hile the diseases and sym p tom s are varied - depression, delu sio n s, h allu cin atio n s and mania - one thing is constant: These people are not getting the help they need before they are arrested or when they are im pris oned. Drug and alcohol abuse is ram pant among the mentally ill, espe cially those who have been incar cerated. R esearch show s that many people with mental disor ders use drugs to self-medicate. to feel "norm al." Untreated, diseases like A tten tion Deficit D isorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity D iso rd er (A D H D ) can cause young people to becom e agitated, unfocused and difficult to m an age, both at hom e and in the classroom . M any children af flicted with A D D or ADHD d on’t ge, the help they need suffer in school and often drop out. A p o p u la tio n . T h is c o u n try ’s system s must w ork together: sc h o o ls m ust m o n ito r s tu dents to detect early signs o f m ental health issues, c o u n seling centers and hospitals must do the sam e. W hen a person is arrested for a nonviolent crim e, a full mental health assessm ent must be made and treatment must be available. Catching and address ing these problems in the early stages can help diver, many men and women away from the prison system. The U.S. government has a responsibil ity to make sure all o f its citi zens, not ju st the privileged class, has access to adequate mental health care. Such an investment saves society in the long run. Speed the Recovery on Gulf Coast nity. They saw it as an opportu nity for a 21st Century Urban Rem oval Strategy. They said, "These folks are gone. Let's re m ake the city. L et's m ake it smaller. Let's take the coffee out o f this cream. Let's change the by M arc H. M oriai . character o f New Orleans." I would be remiss if The problem was: It was mor I said I was satisfied ally wrong. with the recovery from A 16-person commission cre Hurricane Katrina be ated in Dallas, Texas, began a cause I am most defi process that lasted for four months nitely not. I am not to create a plan that would have a lo n e . T h e re are shrunk the city's footprint. And it countless other organizations re c a n gave cause and comfort to con leasing reports lamenting the state popu of the G ulf Coast one year after lation in the city fell from 36 erational, while only 41 percent gressional fiddle-faddling. The o f homes have gas service. Less truth is: the Three Stooges could Katrina ravaged its shores and percent to 21 percent.. than one-third o f public schools have been better organized. That's Roughly 4 1 percent o f Katrina floods devastated neighborhoods. Thousands remain dislocated. evacuees are still displaced - not and half o f the city's major hos why the recovery lost track. Even tually, a backlash to the notion of Employment is still far below back in their own homes. An pitals are open. shrinking the footprint prompted There's no doubt that this re pre-Katrina levels, and many e s estim ated 278,0<X) of them are in sential services-including public the w orkforce, and 23 percent covery has been mishandled. But the mayor and the business com munity to change course. transportation, schools and hos are unemployed. Apartment rents why has it been m ishandled? Marc H. Moriai is president of It started when some people are 39 percent higher than before pitals- haven't fully recovered. the National Urban League. In the first six months after the the storm, and the num ber of saw the hurricane as an opportu Some plans to remake city are immoral storm hit. N ew O rlean s lost nearly 280,000 residents - 64 percent o f its population, accord ing to a recent report by the National Urban League's Legislative Policy Insti tute. The African Ameri- households in trailers hit 114,000. 28 percent more than six months ago, the report found. A full year later, public ser vices and infrastructure are still substandard: Less than half the bus and streetcar routes are op- There's no doubt that this recovery has been mishandled. But why has it been mishandled? Drug Courts Impose Solutions for Addiction Clackamas County Adult Drug Practice has shown that putting drug court. Drug court is not an easy out. At court has seen six women give birth people behind bars doesn't affect their drug use. For many the Clackamas County Drug Court, Io drug-free babies, saving taxpay by J i im ; e R obert S ei . ander offenders jail is a social we require offenders to appear on ers an estim ated $1.5 million. When I was Curry County club where old friends time every week, go into treatment, Sheriffs deputies who provide se Deputy District Attorney in Judge Greg Mathis is na meet. Released addicts submit to random drug testing, curity in my courtroom initially come the early 1970s, I sought long tional vice president o f Rain- simply go back to their bring pay stubs to prove they're with an attitude that drug court is a penitentiary sentences for how PUSH and a national hoard other friends, old neigh working, attend at least three 12- liberal do-gooder idea. They ob most drug offenders. I be member o f the Southern Chris borhoods and addictions. step meetings a week, not associ serve me exchange hugs with suc lieved prison was the ultimate tian Leadership Conference. What works for many offenders is ate with users and get a GEDor high cessful participants or host an ice sanction. I was wrong. school diploma. Failure to follow cream party if everyone remains any program rule will result in a clean and sober three weeks in a sanction ranging from writing an row. But after w itnessing the change in people's lives, these of essay to going to jail. One woman in my court had suc- ficers change their minds. They sec that offenders in drug court may risk more sanctions and spend more time in jail than if they were sen tenced or on probation. The best evidence that drug THE BO TTO M LESS courts work is in the lives that are changed. One participant with mul tiple felony convictions, while par ticipating indrugcourt, was working cesstully secured a job, regained a fast-fixxl job when her boss handed custody of her kids and had met her the keys one evening and asked every other requirement -- but she her to lock up after closing. T h in k y o u ’re a c o n n o is s e u r o f s n a p , g r a h a m , s a n d w ic h , "She knew my background," she believed she wasn't capable of pass w a fe r , c h o c o la t e c o v e r e d a n d lo w fa t c o o k i e s ? T h in k ing the GED tests. When I told her told me, "and yet she gave me the time was running out, she finally key and promoted me to manager." a g a in . T h e r e ’s a lo t to le a rn a b o u t th e w o r ld o f c o o k ie s took the tests - and passed. Now, as This drug court graduate has now a n d t h e r e 's n o b e t t e r p la c e to c o m e f o r a n e d u c a t io n a confident drug court graduate, she started a business, enrolled in col t h a n o u r c o o k ie ta s tin g th is w e e k e n d . W e ll b e o p e n in g is enrolling in college. Her story is lege and was recently married. a b o u t 1 OO v a r ie t ie s f o r y o u to s a m p le . T h is w e e k e n d With adequate treatment capac anecdotal evidence of what the state ity and court staff, the Oregon drug Department of Human Services, fol w e 'll a ls o b e s h o w c a s in g s o m e o f th e m o s t c e le b r a t e d courts could accommodate many lowing legislative direction to invest c o f f e e r o a s te r s . J o in u s S a t u r d a y a n d S u n d a y . 1 1 a m more offenders and provide even more money in proven practices, has u n til 5 p m . more benefit to society. Drug court just accepted as research-supported fact: Drug courts are effective in is a cost-efficient, crime reducing, helping many non-violent offenders life-changing program that works. Judge Robert Selander is a quit using drugs, stop committing A SY & FU N TO S H O P • LO C A LLY O W N ED & O P E R A T E D Clackamas County C ircuit crimes, get jobs and pay taxes. A R B O R L O D G E N I n t e r s t a t e A v e & P o r t l a n d B lv d P o r t l a n d O R 9 7 2 1 7 5 0 3 4 6 7 4 7 7 7 Drug courts save money by re Judge and president o f the Or ducing not only crime, but also the egon Association of Drug Court C O N C O R D IA N E 3 3 r d & K illin g s w o r t h P o r tla n d O R 9 7 2 1 1 5 0 3 .2 8 8 3 8 3 8 need for social services. The Professionals. a n d s ix o t h e r P o r t l a n d a r e a l o c a t i o n s V is i t u s o n l i n e a t w w w n e w s e a s 0 n 9 m a r k e t . c o m Breaking the cycle SEASONS M A R K E T CmkiAfar E For many offenders jail is a social club where old friends meet. I