Mental health services proposed for inmates

Inmates would have better access to mental health care under a bill heard by the Judiciary Committee Feb. 20.

LB592, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Kate Bolz, would require the state Department of Correctional Services to administer a mental health evaluation to all inmates within the first two weeks of their incarceration. Those diagnosed as mentally ill would be required to receive mental health treatment and be re-evaluated prior to their release.

The bill would require the department to notify law enforcement and other state and county officials at least 90 days in advance of the parole or release of a potentially dangerous or mentally ill inmate. Additionally, the measure would require the department to give two weeks’ notice to law enforcement when potentially dangerous or mentally ill inmates are released on furlough.

The department’s Parole Administration Office would be placed under the supervision of the state Board of Parole to enable more autonomy.

Originally, the bill contained a provision that would have expanded the definition of mental illness to include personality disorders, but Bolz said an amendment to revise the definition is forthcoming.

Bolz said the bill is designed to improve how mentally ill inmates are identified, treated and monitored after release. Bolz said she was disheartened by the lack of accountability revealed by testifiers during interim hearings convened to study the circumstances of a former prison inmate charged with multiple murders. Nebraska’s correctional system needs to protect citizens better, she said.

“This bill strengthens our gatekeeper role,” Bolz said.

Brad Meurrens of Nebraska Advocacy Services testified in support of the bill. Calling prisons the country’s “new asylums,” Meurrens said that only 5.4 percent of the general population can be classified as mentally ill, compared to 16 percent of the prison population. Better access to mental health is crucial to reducing recidivism upon inmates’ release, he added.

“If there is no treatment, inmates will cycle in and out of corrections,” Meurrens said.

Mike Marvin, executive director of the Nebraska Association of Public Employees, also spoke in support of the bill. Evaluating inmates immediately after incarceration would lead to faster treatment, he said, resulting in a safer working environment for corrections employees.

Scott Frakes, the new director of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, testified in opposition to the bill. Although he agreed with some provisions of the bill, Frakes said other changes might conflict with future prison reform plans.

“Allow me to complete my assessment of the department,” he said, noting that he started the job only three weeks ago.

Sheri Dawson of the state Department of Health and Human Services also spoke in opposition to the bill. She said that expanding the definition of mental illness would create a much larger population of potential patients that community services might not be equipped to handle.

“When you broaden the definition, it broadens who you are serving,” she said.

The committee took no immediate action on the bill.