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| Suicide highlights risk of incarcerating the mentally fragile |
| By The Coloradoan |
| Published: 12/22/2003 |
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The suicide of an inmate at the Larimer County (Colo.) Detention Center highlights the challenges of helping people with mental-health issues via the criminal-justice system, health advocates said last Monday. "There are a lot of risk factors involved in suicide, and one of them is incarceration," said Doug Hirst, director of adult services for the Larimer Center for Mental Health. "Jail is not the place to treat the mentally ill." Bradley J. Briggs, 24, used a plastic bag to suffocate himself in a jail shower, authorities reported last Monday. The bag had been provided to Briggs to cover bandages on his arm while he showered. Advocates said Briggs' actions in recent weeks might have been avoided had Briggs been identified early as someone in need of help. "One of the tragedies is that, because of mental health cutbacks, our prison and jail system has become a de facto mental-health system," said Bev Thurber, executive director of the Suicide Resource Center of Larimer County. "People with bipolar disorders, schizophrenia and depression who are suicidal are often incarcerated rather than being treated. It's really a tragedy that this is happening." Briggs was arrested by Fort Collins SWAT officers after a six-hour standoff on Nov. 28 in which he at times brandished a handgun -- a possible indication he was suicidal, Thurber said. It is unknown if Briggs had pre-existing psychological issues. Briggs swallowed prescription pills and consumed alcohol prior to his arrest, police said. After he was booked, Briggs was placed on an emotional instability watch -- checked every 15 minutes by counselors. Eventually, mental health workers agreed that Briggs needed to be checked every 30 minutes, and later, only at night, every 30 minutes -- a step away from needing any supervision. Briggs' death is the first successful suicide by an inmate at the county jail in two decades, according to the Larimer County Sheriff's Office. However, across the nation, suicide is a leading cause of death among jail inmates. In 1993 and 1999, roughly 36 percent of such deaths were the result of suicide, according to the most recent census data compiled by statistician Jim Stephan for the U.S. Bureau of Justice. Suicide is unpredictable, said Major Justin Smith of the sheriff's department. In the Larimer County Detention Center, many of the inmates appear to have mental-health needs, according to sheriff's department data requested by the Coloradoan. So far this year, 25.7 percent of the jail's inmates were prescribed medications to deal with mental-health issues. The average over the last three years is 24.8 percent. Counseling will be available to inmates in the aftermath of Briggs' suicide, Smith said. There won't be any group sessions, but mental health workers and deputies will watch for warning signs that inmates might have been affected by Briggs' actions. |
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