Text 33712, 158 rader
Skriven 2016-06-02 19:22:50 av Lee Lofaso (2:203/2)
Kommentar till text 33673 av Allen Prunty (1:2320/100)
Ärende: Criminal Justice System
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Hello Allen,
DD>>>> Are you a qualified psychiatrist?
AP>>> Doesn't matter... a psychologist or psychaitrist can only hold
AP>>> someone for so long. It takes a Judge's order to commit someone AP>>to
AP> a long term care facility.
DD>> I wasn't referring to holding someone, rather diagnosing them.
AP> Part of what I did in my Law Enforcement Career (mind you I worked higher
AP> level corrections and not as a beat officer) was housing profiling. I
AP> would use my Psychology training to place inmates in the prisons and
AP> facilities where they belong. It was NOT an easy job, nut when it comes
to
AP> committing someone into a mental health institution it's up to the judge.
Insanity is a legal defense, not a psychiatric evaluation or
diagnosis of mental illness. Mental health facilities only have
room for so many patients, especially in these days of budget
cuts. Only the very wealthy can afford to pay for private care,
so what is to be done with those who cannot afford the price?
And what about those who are criminally insane, not just nuts?
Where are they placed? What is to be done with them, especially
if there is no room left at the inn?
Are nutters placed in general population? Are nutters given
their own private cell, so they cannot be molested by other
residents? If they are a danger to others, and/or to themselves,
then clearly they should be protected. But who wants to pay for
the services they need?
AP> There were times Judges would commit someone to a mental health
institution
AP> and the mental health staff knew that they were criminal, sane and
AP> malingering. They clearly belonged in the custody of the prison system
not
AP> the mental health system and it would often take an escape attempt or harm
AP> of a staff member or other patient to get them back in the right system.
Society has a right to be protected from harm, from criminals and
those who are mentally ill. We also have places to keep them.
But not enough places to house the nutters. We have plenty of
guards, and plenty of prisons. We also have more shrinks than any
other country on the face of this planet. But not nearly enough
places (hospitals) to keep the nutters. So where do we place them?
What should we do with them?
AP> What really pissed me off during my career with corrections is when our
AP> doctors would pull someone off of Xanax (which is one of the most grossly
AP> over prescribed drugs out there) and a judge would send a court order over
AP> to continue the medication.
Ignore the order and the resident can do whatever he/she wants
without being held responsible/accountable for his/her actions.
AP> Most GOOD doctors that work in the corrections system would say "yeah
right"
AP> and stick to their guns. Inevitably the doctor would be called in for a
AP> contempt hearing and we would have to point out that by issuing that court
AP> order the judge was practicing medicine without a license. They would
agree
AP> with the doctor after the doctor presented why the medicine was
AP> discontinued.
AP> Then two weeks later issue a court order to give an inmate seroquel or
AP> another drug.
There used to be a participant in this forum who enjoyed writing
about his experiences in a local jail cell in Florida. Said he was
given loads of serequel to keep him quiet. Took him two months to
get out of jail, with all charges dropped for lack of evidence.
AP> It was an insane cycle.... seroquel was known as "mike tyson" in the
prisons
AP> and jails because it "knocks you out" so they can sleep through their
AP> sentence.
Maybe that is how he survived two months (in isolation according
to him).
AP> Most judges eventually get the manipulations, but every time we get a new
AP> one elected or appointed in... oh boy, here we go again.
Judges only interpret the law, having no power of their own to
write or enforce the law.
AP> Even if you have the degrees and certifications, Judges always have the
AP> final say and often have no knowledge of an inmate's mental health status
AP> or medical status. Sadly, they make decisions based on a 15 minute
AP> encounter in their courtroom most often without consulting the
AP> professionals who would gladly write a recommendation.
Judges do not have to know diddley squat. And neither do law
enforcement authorities. If somebody is acting out of line, all
security has to do is "bakerize" them, taking the individual to
the nearest psychiatric facility for evaluation. If a shrink
determines the individual is a danger to others and/or to himself,
then that individual could wind up being confined to a mental
institution for a very long time. Without ever being charged
with a crime, or having a say in court.
AP> I was not in the state system or the federal system, it's easier once they
AP> reach that point because they are sentenced and serving.
When Katrina hit New Orleans, thousands upon thousands of Americans
were left homeless. Many of them have never been able to return to
their homes/communities in New Orleans. A few hundred of those
evacuees were relocated to a military base in Utah, isolated from
the rest of society. These evacuees were homeless, had no money,
and all black. The people on the military base had lots of money,
nice houses, and were all white. FEMA provided travel trailers
for the homeless to live in. Uncle Sam picked up the cost for
the utilities. The military kept them well fed on MRE's.
AP> Once they land there they don't have easy access to the courts.
You can only sue the government if the government allows you to
do so. And the government was not going to allow the people it
saved from biting the hand the fed them. GWB may have been the
most incompetent president in the history of the United States,
but he meant well.
AP> But at the local county Jail level (and I worked at a facility that had
over
AP> 2,500 inmates at any time, one of the largest in the USA) they have access
AP> to the courts and we were ALWAYS having to contact judges after the fact.
Residents should have access. Never should anybody be denied
their Constitional rights. Unfortunately, those rights vary from
state to state, as each state has its own interpretation of what
those rights are.
AP> The scary thing is we had a person that was absolutely vocal about killing
AP> his wife... he was HOMICIDAL as hell and he held it together in front of
AP> the judge enough that he got released on his own recognizance. As we were
AP> waiting our turn to get an audiance with the judge, the Jail processed him
AP> out and put him on the streets. This person went straight to his wife's
AP> house and stabbed her
AP> once in the leg. I really think God intervened because his heart
literally
AP> exploded and he died instantly before he could do anything more than that.
AP> If he didn't have a massive heart attack he would have killed her while we
AP> were in line to get the judge to remove the ROR order.
She did something that scared the living bejeezus out of him.
Now think it out. What is it that she did that made him croak?
AP> I wonder if Norway or other countries have the same issues with
AP> medical/mental health. Do the Judges override the doctors? Here they
sure
AP> try.
Thor has a hammer. But he answers to Odin.
--Lee
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