Judge Blasts Mississippi’s Mental Health System Saying State Violated Federal Civil Rights Laws
“Despite the state’s episodic improvement, it operates a system that unlawfully discriminates against persons with serious mental illness,” said U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves in his 61-page report. Reeves ordered both the U.S. Department of Justice, which brought the lawsuit in 2016, and the state of Mississippi to submit names of potential special masters to oversee improvements within 30 days.
The New York Times:
Mississippi Mental Health System Violates Federal Law, Judge Says
A federal judge in Mississippi ruled Wednesday that the state had violated federal civil rights law by not providing mental health patients enough care in their communities, forcing them to essentially be segregated in state-run hospitals. In a 61-page opinion, Judge Carlton W. Reeves of United States District Court in Jackson, Miss., said that the state had run afoul of the Americans With Disabilities Act. He said he would appoint a special master to oversee changes to Mississippi’s mental health system. (Zaveri, 9/4)
The Associated Press:
Federal Judge Intervenes In Mississippi Mental Health System
Reeves wrote that he's "keenly aware of the judiciary's limitations" in cases like this. He ordered the state and federal government to each suggest three possible names to act as a special master, along with a proposal for that person's role. Until Reeves decides on the special master's role, the depth of federal intervention into the mental health system won't be clear. (Amy and Pettus, 9/4)
The Wall Street Journal:
Federal Judge Directs Oversight Of Mississippi’s Mental-Health System
The judge, nominated by President Obama, wants a “special master” appointed to help craft and oversee changes in the state’s mental-health system. Both the state and the Justice Department will be able to name candidates for the job. In 2011, a Justice Department investigation found that Mississippi’s mental-health system “unnecessarily institutionalizing persons with mental illness.” Five years later, after negotiations with state officials failed, the Justice Department sued Mississippi, alleging that it failed to provide adequate services in the community for adults with mental illness. By confining the mentally ill in state-run hospitals and jails, Mississippi is violating the rights of individuals with disabilities, the lawsuit alleged. (Ansari, 9/4)
Jackson Free Press:
Judge: Mississippi Violates Civil Rights Of Those With Mental Illness
"Watching some of the trial and then seeing some of the documents, and having a chance to look at the documents that went with the trial, I think it's pretty clear that our system has not allowed people with mental illness who want to live in their community to be able to have that opportunity," Joy Hogge, who advocates for children's mental-health care as the executive director of Families as Allies, told the Jackson Free Press after the ruling came down Wednesday morning. "It's not good for people to be forced to live in an institution and be separated from everybody else." (Pittman, 9/4)
