[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 131 (Tuesday, November 16, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11365-S11366]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                         MENTALLY ILL OFFENDERS

  Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I come to the floor in support of the 
Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act. On October 11, 
2004, the Senate passed this bill and on October 30, 2004, President 
Bush signed it into law. I am very pleased that this law is now on the 
books because it will help address a serious problem that I have talked 
about before on several occasions.
  Each year, more than 700,000 individuals with serious mental illness 
are booked into our Nation's jails. A recent Justice Department study 
revealed that 16 percent of all inmates in America's state prisons and 
local jails today are mentally ill. This has created one of the biggest 
challenges facing our front-line police officers, judges, prosecutors, 
and corrections officers and has left mentally ill inmates caught in a 
destructive cycle.
  As a former prosecuting attorney, I know about the helplessness that 
law enforcement officers feel when they have no other option than to 
arrest and incarcerate a person with mental illness who has committed a 
non-violent crime. I have seen the cycle of a non-violent, mentally ill 
offender who is arrested repeatedly and put into the system 
repeatedly--never being treated for his illness and, as a result, 
becoming more and more ill. I also have shared the frustration of 
judges who repeatedly sentence these low-level offenders, knowing that, 
without connection to needed services, they will just end up right back 
in the courtroom.
  Despite the complexity of these issues, recent initiatives 
demonstrate that we can increase public safety and reduce the numbers 
of mentally ill people trapped in the criminal justice system. We know 
that if given appropriate care early, the special needs of the mentally 
ill can be addressed to avoid a growing problem that increases the 
likelihood of repeat offenses. Four years ago, Senator Pete Domenici, 
Representative Ted Strickland, and I authored America's Law Enforcement 
and Mental Health Act. As a consequence of this law, the U.S. 
Department of Justice made available to 37 jurisdictions $7 million in 
funding and technical assistance for mental health courts. These courts 
are staffed by a core group of specialized professionals, including a 
dedicated judge, prosecutor, and public defender, who deal with mental 
illness cases and a court liaison to the mental health services 
community. While still early in their implementation, mental health 
courts have shown promising results. Mentally ill persons who choose to 
have their cases heard in a mental health court often do so because 
that is the first real opportunity that many have had to seek 
treatment.
  Last year, Senator Leahy, Senator Domenici, Representative Strickland 
and I introduced the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime 
Reduction Act. Our bill authorizes a grant program to help states and 
counties design

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and implement collaborative efforts between their criminal justice and 
mental health systems. This would allow, for example, a State 
corrections department to partner with the mental health system to 
ensure that people with mental illness released from prison are 
provided medications and connected to community-based service 
providers. It also could provide for programs to train local law 
enforcement on responding to individuals with mental illness. These 
programs would be proposed and controlled by the local and State 
officials most knowledgeable about the needs of their communities.
  Since its inception, our Nation has stood on the foundations of 
compassion and justice. These programs envisioned by this bill are a 
wonderful embodiment of both ideals and have earned a broad coalition 
of support from law enforcement, mental health advocates, state 
officials and private groups, including the Council of State 
Governments, the National Sheriffs' Association, the Police Executive 
Research Forum, and the American Correctional Association. With this 
bill, we move closer to both addressing the needs of the mentally ill 
and easing the burden upon our police and correctional workers. It will 
make a real difference, and I thank my colleagues--especially Ranking 
Member Leahy, Senator Grassley, Senator Durbin, Senator Domenici, 
Senator Cantwell, Chairman Hatch, and Senator Murray for their support. 
I would also like to thank Congressman Strickland and Chairman 
Sensenbrenner for championing this issue on the House side.

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