Jail Inmates' Mental Health Care Neglected; State and Federal Attention Needed

Studies indicate that from 20 to 60 percent of the jail population on any given day have mental health problems. But most jails do not identify all inmates in need of help or provide for their proper care. The Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA) established the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals to formulate national criminal justice standards and goals at the State and local levels. The Commission found a general lack of funding and program innovation at the local level, and it concluded that few local communities, especially in sparsely settled areas, have sufficient resources to resolve jails' problems and provide appropriate health and other services. The Commission recommended that the States assume the responsibility for operating and controlling local jails by 1982. If States did not assume control, it recommended alternative actions which included: (1) adoption of professional, statewide standards for jails, and State inspections to ensure compliance; (2) State supervision of and assistance for training of jail personnel; and (3) State-supervised comprehensive planning to ensure that all appropriate community services agencies were used to provide services for inmates in jails or through community-based alternatives.

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