Oxford Handbook of Learning and Intellectual Nursing

Running head: RESEARCH PLAN 0
CRIMINAL LAW
JANUARY 7, 2020
STUDENT DETAILS:

RESEARCH PLAN 1
Research question or statement
The research question of this research plan is ‘whether the mental illness in criminal justice
system is fairly treated?
Research problem and interest
This research study is helpful to create understanding about fair treatment of mental illness in
criminal justice system. This study is also useful for readers to know more information about
mental illness. It can be also effective for the people to understand the way and remedies to get
out of the mental illness. In addition to the common as well as severe mental disorder, there are
different characteristics of the individuals in the legal system, which may present specific issues
or problems. This study is relevant to tell that the criminals have similar rights to access health
as other people. It also evaluates the interventions to be used for mentally disordered offenders1.
Literature review -
Mental sickness in criminal justice system –
The mental illness is a problem that is faced by criminal justice system on regular basis. The
mental health plays important role in crimes. The mental illness is not considered as the main
cause of criminal conduct. The mental illness is not mainly accountable for the disproportionate
criminal justice system representation of the people with mental. Somewhat, the severe crime
1 Gerry Owen and others, ‘Mental capacity and psychiatric in-patients: implications for the
new mental health law in England and Wales’ [2009] Br J Psychiatry 195

RESEARCH PLAN 2
controlling procedures as well as The Draconian Drug Laws2 are helpful for the seemingly great
numbers of persons with mental sickness who are detained along with imprisoned. In addition,
various elements can create a problem with mental sickness and criminal justice system.
Moreover, there are various examples of the mental illnesses including anxiety, threat, tenseness,
and apprehension about something that can take place in upcoming period. The people across the
country suffer from chronic mental sickness, which can put impact on different factors of the life
of prison. It can put negative impacts on employment, personal relationship, as well as the
involvement of criminal activities. The ADHD or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is
considered as the mental disorder that is featured by the lessened capability to control level of
activities (hyperactivity) to perform various tasks3.
Treatment of people having mental illness in criminal justice system
In United Kingdom, persons with mental illness in criminal justice system are required to be
fairly treated as same as other people. They should have same rights like others. The officers of
administration of jail and prison should be competent to recognise a problem of mental fitness. It
is required that mental health experts such as psychiatrists should be available twenty-four hours
in a day or 7 days in the week. In this way, these mental health experts can assess the potential
crises. In addition, they should also recommend the emergency medication in incarceration
facilities. These are certain examples of the health issues that cannot be recognized by untrained
2 The Draconian Drug Laws
3 Vigdis Sveinsdottir and Bond Gary, Barriers to employment for people with severe mental illness and criminal
justice involvement (Routledge 2017)

RESEARCH PLAN 3
officers. It is essential to train the officers of jail or prison because sometimes they do not
understand the signs as well as conducts, which go along with the mental sickness4.
Moreover, a dilemma can see in a matter of Andrea Yates, thirty-six years old native of Texas
that drowned her 5 kids. Many horrified by the crime in hope she will be discipline and others
had mix emotion. It came out during the hearing that she was mentally ill suffering from
postpartum psychosis but was it only the defence tactic. It is stated by the supporter, “the Justice
Department Enquiry from 1999 assess that mentally sick convicts are to be approximately
sixteen per cent of whole population. Analyst says fair treatment of the mental ill often outshined
by disagreement to utilisation of the insanity defence, which certain claim abused the manner to
get away with crime. As per the report, the insanity defence is utilised in not more than one per
cent of all criminal hearings.” In this way, the issue still moves forward as debate of justice
system on how to manage these circumstances. This problem becomes the accountability, as it is
what nation has condensed in a criminal justice system. For this objective, this is necessary to
know their duties along with accountability that criminal justice system has in conducting
additional research on the methodologies. To ensure right of people with psychological disorder,
it is required to enhance a treatment of mentally sick criminals as well as conduct for the
criminal emotionally5.
In addition, the number of criminals with mentally sickness imprisoned is gradually increasing.
There are about 7% of mentally sick criminals in jail within population of United Kingdom6. The
approach to the individual assessment would be choosing people whom have had prior encounter
with criminal justice system such as individual that entered the justice system and have treatment
4 John Frieda, The mental illness in criminal justice system (Cambridge University Press 2018)
5 George Daumit, Training to prisoner officials (Springer 2015)
6 Mien Easter, The criminal justice system (Oxford University Press 2015)