THE CRIMINALIZATION OF PERSONS WITH SERIOUS MENTAL-ILLNESS LIVING IN RURAL-AREAS

In the context of restrictive admissions policies at public inpatient facilities, rates of arrest and incarceration of persons with serious mental illness (SMI) have been increasing, leading to the perception t hat SMI persons are being unduly ''criminalized.'' This paper describe s the characteristics of persons with SMI (N=177) in Mississippi who h ave been (1) jailed without charges while awaiting a hospital bed and (2) jailed for a criminal offense. Seventy-five percent (N=132) of the 177 subjects had been held in local jails awaiting state hospital adm ission at least once in their lives, most for move than five days. Fif teen percent (N=26) had contact with the police for a criminal offense in the past year. Rural residence markedly increased the risk for wai ting in jail (OR=4.24) but was not related to committing a criminal of fense. Protective factors for any type of criminal justice contact wer e female gender, caucasian ethnicity, better compliance with medicatio n regimes, and nonrural residence. The phenomenon of rural criminaliza tion, i.e., waiting in jail without criminal charges, differs qualitat ively from the criminalization that occurs in urban areas and may requ ire a different solution. To avoid criminalization of SMI persons in r ural areas, public mental health systems must develop effective crisis interventions in the community or work with local law enforcement off icials and medical and mental health facilities to create more immedia te access to acute inpatient care.