Judge: State delays for mentally ill inmates a burden for jails
PantagraphApr 04, 2017
Jumper refused to leave her jail cell for a hearing Monday, according to defense lawyer
Patton told Judge
The judge noted that he recently received a similar request for an extension in another case.
The state facility has a limited number of beds available, said Drazewski, "but this is putting the burden back on the county jails."
Longer waits in jail are not in compliance with state law, said the judge.
"Something needs to occur so the rights of the individuals under the statutes are being afforded to them," said Drazewski.
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The flexibility to postpone compliance with the requirements of the law is not always offered to county jails, said the judge, citing notices IDHS sends to the county when an inmate has finished treatment and needs to be returned to jail.
As more mentally ill people cycle into jails, it's not uncommon for counties to be holding inmates beyond the 30 days the state has to file its treatment plan for inmates with behavioral health issues.
Not all mentally ill inmates are forced to wait in jail for a bed at McFarland.
When asked in January by The Pantagraph why McFarland staff asked that Petersen remain in the facility that is chronically short of beds for treatment, an agency representative said such requests are rare and are made when doctors believe an extended stay is in the best interest of the defendant's care.
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