A cross-sectional study of psychosocial and criminal factors associated with arrest in mentally ill female detainees

In this study, the relationship was examined among clinical, criminal, and sociodemographic characteristics and the severity of the criminal charge of mentally ill female detainees admitted to the women's psychiatric unit at a large urban jail. In a cross-sectional study, 96 randomly selected female detainees were interviewed by one of two trained interviewers using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM (SCID)-IV, the Addiction Severity Index, the Global Assessment of Functioning Scale (GAF), and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey. Criminal offense categories were based on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program. Altogether, 48 percent of the detainees had been charged with committing at least one Part I crime; 27 percent were charged with committing a violent crime against persons. Lower GAF score and previous conviction(s) for a serious crime were associated with current arrest for a Part I crime. The data also suggest that a lower GAF score may be associated with a current charge of committing a violent crime, and placement on probation or parole before the current arrest may be protective against this charge. Mentally ill women who are more functionally impaired may be at higher risk of being arrested and charged with committing more serious and more violent crimes than those with lesser impairment.

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