National Alliance for Mental Illness

Question 1

Among the general population in the United States,
only X percent of adults have a serious mental illness.

However, among the population in U.S. jails, X percent have a serious mental illness

Answer 1

Among the general population in the United States,
only 2.8 percent of adults have a serious mental illness.

However, among the population in U.S. jails, 7.2 percent have a serious mental illness

Question 2

Among the general population in the United States,

only X percent of adults have a serious mental illness.

Answer 2

Among the general population in the United States,

only 2.8 percent of adults have a serious mental illness.

Question 3

Among the population in U.S. jails, X percent have a serious mental illness

Answer 3

However, among the population in U.S. jails, 7.2 percent have a serious mental illness

Question 4

“Right to Treatment”

Answer 4

The Eighth Amendment right of prisoners to treatment guarantees that prisoners in every jail and prison in the United States will receive appropriate treatment for any “serious medical need.”

Question 5

a generalization can be made that crimes that
are punishable by incarceration of one year or less are BLANKS and crimes that are punishable by incarceration of more than one year are BLANKS

Answer 5

a generalization can be made that crimes that are punishable by incarceration of one year or less are misdemeanors, and crimes that are punishable by incarceration of more than one year are felonies.

Question 6

An arrest occurs when

Answer 6

a police officer takes a person into custody for the purpose of charging that person with a crime.

Question 7

custody

Answer 7

different than questioning
if taken into custody
he or she is not free to leave – for the purpose of charging that person with a crime. This is important in the context of mental illness because an arrest does
not occur every time a person with mental illness is picked up or taken into custody
by the police.

Question 8

An arrest is only lawful when it is supported by

Answer 8

probable cause

Question 9

in the case of a misdemeanor, an officer has probable

cause to make an arrest only if the officer

Answer 9

actually sees the crime being committed.

It is also common practice in a misdemeanor case for a police officer to issue a citation to appear in court at a later date, rather than make an arrest.