Privacy for the institutionalized mentally ill

During the past decade the courts have taken an increasingly active rule in shaping the physical facilities that house environmentally captive individuals. Perhaps the most influential of these cases was Wyatt v. Stickney (1972), which has been cited as a basis for standards promulgated by other courts (e.g., Davis v. Hubbard, 1980), for model standards (Staff, 1977), and for changes made by administrators fearing litigation (Sommer & Kroll, 1979). Despite this widespread acceptance, there was no apparent empirical basis for, or validation of, the standards. The purpose of the present study was to assess the validity of the behavioral assumptions underlying the Wyatt standards regarding physical changes intended to ensure patient privacy. Patient perceptions of privacy were examined on two units in a facility that met the standards mandated in Wyatt. The results demonstrated that although some of the court's assumptions were valid, several were not, and that overall the standards in this influential case do not ensure patient privacy for the institutionalized mentally ill. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

Guilty but mentally ill: the South Carolina experience

Thirty of the first 45 individuals to receive guilty but mentally ill (GBMI) verdicts in South Carolina were interviewed using a structured interview schedule for diagnosis. The relationship of diagnosis to pretrial evaluation and posttrial conviction treatment are discussed. No person received GBMI in a jury trial. Suggestions to improve the operation of the GBMI verdict are made, as well as a brief review of these data with data from other states.     

Homelessness and the mentally ill offender.

This paper presents the results of a retrospective analysis of the discharge summaries of 69 mentally ill offenders. The subjects were patients in a New York State Psychiatric Hospital for a two-year period between January 1988 and December 1989 who were referred by the courts under New York State Criminal Procedure Law (CPL). The subjects were further compared as to homelessness at the time of the instant offense to study the association of this variable and criminal behavior among the mentally ill. Statistical analyses demonstrated significant relationships between variables of homelessness, prior offense history, and substance abuse.