Mental Health within the Criminal Justice System Essay -- Criminal Ju

This essay intends to address the role that state agencies, both within the Criminal Justice System (CJS) and more broadly the institutions of education, employment and health, interpret in supporting and implementing diversionary programs for offenders with cordial health problems. Mental health is clearly one of the most critical issues facing the Australian and New federation Wales (NSW) CJS with research indicating that offenders with mental health problems constitute the majority of those within the prison system. The current strategies for diversion will be critically evaluated in order to square up their effectiveness with regard to the delivery and production of justice, cultural sensitivity for Indige zero(prenominal)s Australians will also be considered. The social construction of mental illness and the associated physical process of stigmatisation of this particular group will be explored in conjunction to explain why society still fails to prevent the mass entry of populate with mental health issues into the traditional CJS.Critical to understanding the extent of the problem is a clear definition of mentally ill, a person suffering from mental illness and, owing to that illness, there are reasonable grounds for believing that care, treatment or control of the person is necessary for the persons give protection from serious harm, or for the protection of others from serious harm Mental Health Act 2007 (NSW). Noting that the statute specifies the control of this group which adds to the notion that people with mental health problems are inherently more dangerous members of our society. Furthermore mental health problems within the prison system (inmate population) are estimated to be three to four clock higher than in the general Australian popula... ...Opportunities in public policy to support infant and early childhood mental health, American Psychologist, vol. 66, no. 2, pp. 129-139. New South Wales Police Force, 2011, Mental health in tervention team news, brochure, NSW Police Force, New South Wales Richardson, E. & McSherry, B., 2010, Diversion down under Programs for offenders with mental illnesses in Australia, International Journal of Law Psychiatry, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 249-257. Seltzer, T., 2005, Mental health courts A misguided attempt to address the criminal justice systems unsporting treatment of people with mental illnesses, Psychology, Public Policy and Law, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 570-586. Wolff, N. & Pogorzelski, W., 2005, Measuring the effectiveness of mental health courts Challenges and recommendations, Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 539-569.