Introduction

• Author: Richard D. Schneider - Hy Bloom - Mark Heerema
• Pages: 1-8

1

chapter one

Introduction

In a perfect world we would not need mental health courts, let alone a book

about them. But in our world we do. We should aspire perhaps to see mental

health courts as part of our future but not as the complete “answer to the

problem” as they are currently perceived in North America.

A. BACKGROUND

There has been a steady decline in the provision of civil mental health-care

services in most western European and North American jurisdictions, in-

cluding Canada. Beginning with the deinstitutionalization movement in the

latter half of the 20th century, adequate mental health-care services became

increasingly scarce. The reality today is no different: mental health-care sys-

tems are generally underfunded and overexpended. There has been a move-

ment toward community-based treatment of major mental illness that, in

many instances, appears to be insuff‌icient to meet the needs of the mentally

ill. Despite what was promised by the state, the public money saved from

the closure of hospitals and mental health institutions has typically not been

re-invested in community treatment. It goes without saying that decreasing

mental health-care services does not lessen the needs of those members of

our society who rely on such services. For these individuals closed doors and

long waiting lists have offered little assistance. Regrettably, those unable to

receive adequate services often f‌ind themselves attracting the attention of

the criminal justice system, leaving that system, ill-equipped as it is, to “sort

out the mess.”

As the social safety net of last resort, the criminal justice system has

swelled with mentally disordered accused and has struggled to meet the ris-