Criminology and Mental Health: Exploring the Justice System's Approach

This report delves into the intricate relationship between criminology and mental health, focusing on the treatment of offenders within the criminal justice system. It begins by highlighting the unique challenges posed by individuals with mental disorders, who may not fully comprehend the severity of their actions or the consequences thereof. The report emphasizes the need for a distinct approach to offenders with mental illnesses compared to those with sound mental health, stressing the importance of defining and identifying individuals with mental disorders within the legal framework. It explores the existing policies and legal principles governing such cases, with the aim of analyzing the justice system's current practices and the methods employed to address offenders with mental health issues. The report references key sources to support its findings, providing a comprehensive overview of the subject matter.

Running head: CRIMINOLOGY
Criminology
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1CRIMINOLOGY
Offenders having Mental Disorders and the Criminal Justice System
In several instances, it has been conceived that individuals who have been accused of committing
an offence has been suffering from acute mental disorder. Under the criminal justice system, these
offenders having mental disorder are required to be subjected to different treatment as that of an offender
who is mentally healthy. This differentiation in treatment is going to the fact that the individuals with
mental disorder are not capable of understanding the severity of the offence they have been committing
(Göbbels, Thakker & Ward, 2016). Moreover, owing to the mental disorder the individual was not being
able to conceive the consequences of the actions they have been committed. However, for the purpose of
extending the individuals with mental illness with different treatment under the criminology as that of
individuals with good mental health in case of an offence being committed by such an individual, the first
thing that is required to be considered is the definition of individuals with mental disorder who will be
considered for the purpose of different treatment under the criminal justice system. After the
identification of the person having mental disorder, the policies and the legal principles relating to such
individuals are also required to be analysed (Emerson, 2017). This paper would strive to analyse the way
in which the criminal justice system has been treating the individuals with mental disorder. This people
would also tried to address the approaches that the criminal justice system has been adopting for the
purpose of subjecting the offenders with mental illness for the purpose of offences committed by them.

2CRIMINOLOGY
References
Emerson, R. M. (2017). Judging delinquents: Context and process in juvenile court. Routledge.
Göbbels, S., Thakker, J., & Ward, T. (2016). Desistance in offenders with mental illness. In Mental
health, crime and criminal justice (pp. 67-90). Palgrave Macmillan, London.