Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
Volume 38, Issue 3, 2010, Pages 392-399

Disparities in justice and care: Persons with severe mental illnesses in the U.S. immigration detention system (Review)

Ochoa K.C. , Pleasants G.L. , Penn J.V. , Stone D.C.
  • a Institute of Psychiatry and Law, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
  • b Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc., San Diego, CA, United States
  • c Department of Mental Health Services, Correctional Managed Care, University of Texas Medical Branch, Huntsville, TX, United States
  • d Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, United States, Consultation Liaison Division, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, CA, United States

Abstract

As the total number of persons held within the U.S. immigration detention system has grown, the number of detained persons with seve re mental illnesses has grown correspondingly. Reports issued by the government, legal and human rights advocates, and the media have brought to light a problematic and growing detention system with pervasive legal and mental health care disparities. Described are the structure and funding of the U.S. immigration detention system, the legal state of affairs for immigration detainees with mental illnesses, and what is known about the present system of mental health care within the U.S. immigration detention system. Attention is given to the paucity of legal protections for immigration detainees with severe mental illnesses, such as no right to appointed legal counsel and no requirement for mental competence before undergoing deportation proceedings. A case example and discussion of potential alternatives to detention highlight the need for wide-ranging reform.

Author Keywords

[No Keywords available]

Index Keywords

social justice social psychology hospitalization human middle aged Mental Disorders mental disease United States Humans Severity of Illness Index male Article prison Prisons migration legal aspect Prejudice Emigration and Immigration Healthcare Disparities health care disparity pathophysiology
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-77956912125&partnerID=40&md5=59238752ff0f3ab403feb62bfff75c59
ISSN: 10936793
Cited by: 14
Original Language: English