Entangled

People with serious mental illness (SMI) are prominently
and unjustly overrepresented in the criminal legal system. More than
one-third-and in some studies more than two-thirds-of those with SMI have a
lifetime history of arrest. For the first time, a single volume takes a deep
dive into the common behaviors, contexts, and decisions that lead to
misdemeanor arrests.

Contributors representing the fields of
anthropology, social work, criminology, and psychiatry draw on data from a
mixed-method, multisite study (Atlanta, Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia)
to examine how people with SMI become entangled in the criminal legal system
and how failure to resolve underlying issues-such as underfunded social and
mental health service systems and the shortage of affordable housing-plays a
role.

Divided into three distinct sections, Entangled: How People
With Serious Mental Illness Get Caught in Misdemeanor Systems


* Provides a historical perspective on how social, mental health,
and criminal legal system policies have imperiled individuals with SMI and
demonstrates the contexts that shape decision-making across misdemeanor
systems.
* Looks at specific misdemeanor charges that have traditionally
been common for people with SMI, including criminal trespass, shoplifting,
obstruction and resisting arrest, and misdemeanor assault and battery, with
insight into the factors behind such charges.
* Reviews necessary
reforms and policy advances in the criminal legal system and the mental
health crisis response system and advocates for a multisystem approach that
emphasizes racial equity.

In each chapter, data-based clinical
vignettes illustrate scenarios in which people with SMI have been arrested
on misdemeanor charges, heightening the clinical relevance of the
information. Key points summarize the main takeaways in every chapter and
help readers retain important concepts.

Offering a thorough and
nuanced description of current challenges as well as a vision of a better
future, Entangled encourages readers to be part of crafting solutions
to help individuals with mental illness-especially serious mental
illness-embrace a life of recovery, hope, empowerment, and integration.