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Mildly mentally handicapped offenders: an alternative to custody

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Christine Johnson ,
Jeanette Smith ,
Geoff Stainer  and
Martin Donovan
Christine Johnson
Affiliation:
Butler Clinic, Langdon Hospital, Dawlish, Devon EX2 0NR
Jeanette Smith
Affiliation:
Butler Clinic, Langdon Hospital, Dawlish, Devon EX2 0NR
Geoff Stainer
Affiliation:
Butler Clinic, Langdon Hospital, Dawlish, Devon EX2 0NR
Martin Donovan
Affiliation:
Butler Clinic, Langdon Hospital, Dawlish, Devon EX2 0NR
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Concern is increasingly being expressed about the lack of provision for mentally disordered offenders, who by default end up within the penal system. Gunn et al (1991) in a study of sentenced prisoners identified a significant number who were mentally disordered to be in need of psychiatric treatment. Among these, 0.4% were considered to be mentally handicapped. Recent reports have emphasised the importance of diverting these individuals from the criminal justice system (Woolf & Tumin, 1991; Home Office, 1990; British Medical Association, 1990). However, the majority of such offenders do not fulfil the criteria for admission to hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983. Most are not overtly mentally ill and do not require treatment in conditions of medium security such as exist in regional secure units. However, it is not clear what provision there should be for such individuals. Smith (1988) described an open forensic unit for mildly mentally handicapped offenders (the Leander Unit). She concluded that there was a need for a specialised service to cater for these patients, who were neither appropriately nor adequately provided for by the general psychiatric services, the mentally handicapped services, regional secure units or special hospitals. Unfortunately, in practice there are very few facilities for this group of patients.

Type
Original articles
Information
Psychiatric Bulletin , Volume 17 , Issue 4 , April 1993 , pp. 199 - 201
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists 1993

References

British Medical Association (1990) Working Party Report on the Health Care of Remand Prisoners. London: BMA.Google Scholar
Gunn, J., Maden, T. & Swinton, M. (1991) Treatment needs of prisoners with psychiatric disorders. British Medical Journal, 303, 338–341.Google Scholar
Home Office (1990) Provision for Mentally Disordered Offenders. Home Office Circular 66/90. London.Google Scholar
Smith, J. E. (1988) An open forensic unit for the borderline mentally impaired offender. Bulletin of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, 12, 13–15.Google Scholar
Woolf, H. & Tumin, S. Prison Disturbances, April 1990: Inquiry HMSO (1991). London: HMSO.Google Scholar
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