NCJ Number
155119
Journal
Social Justice Volume: 21 Issue: 3 Dated: (Fall 1994) Pages: 109-116
Date Published
1994
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article describes a class action suit filed by mentally ill inmates in the California Department of Corrections (CDC) system of facilities, charging that official neglect of their mental health needs constituted cruel and unusual punishment.
Abstract
The trial of Ralph Coleman et al v. Pete Wilson et al lasted for three months in 1993. The judge in the case declared the California prison system to be lacking in each of seven essential elements for an adequate mental health care system. These included screening and identification of mentally ill inmates, staffing, access to care, segregation, medication, medical records, and suicide prevention. The court found that the serious problems in the prison mental health prison were directly related to the deliberate indifference shown by correctional officials. 13 notes