Ohio Supreme Court Justice: Prison has become ‘de facto mental hospital’

Speaking at the University of Dayton last week, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Lundsberg Stratton said the state’s prisons have become ‘de facto mental health hospital(s)” (Source: “Mental health care burdens prisons,” Dayton Daily News, April 6, 2009).

The state spent 68.4 million in 2006 on inmates’ mental health care, or $13.1 million more than officials spent on meals for inmates. And in 2007, mental health care for prisoners increased to $70.2 million.

Speaking to UD criminal justice students, Stratton touted the state’s creation of mental health courts. The state leads the nation in the number of courts that have mental health dockets, and should have more than 40 by the end of the year, Stratton said.