The police and the mentally ill

So I read this piece a while ago, and I didn’t know how to respond to it (still don’t, really), but I thought the author didn’t consider everything. Two things, the piece was written by Mike Riggs, and it is good; secondly, I have/had several severely mentally ill family members. Now, I don’t want to classify mental illness because anyone who has been or knows someone with diagnosed depression or anxiety know that any mental illness is a challenge that can prevent people from basic functioning.

That said, the mental illness I’m talking about is schizophrenia, specifically paranoid schizophrenia. This involves delusions and a breakdown of cognitive skills. It is also a genetic mental illness, so people who have family with it are more likely to develop it. It can be managed by a combination of drugs, but one frequent issue with mental illness is when people are no longer having episodes they believe they can go off medication, which will trigger a relapse. The medications are usually used to suppress dopamine and serotonin receptor activity, which when the medication combination isn’t correct can trigger symptoms like those found in persons diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Schizophrenics are more likely to be victims of violent and non-violent crime. More likely to have co-occurring conditions such as depression, bipolar disorder, and substance abuse problems; they are also more likely to commit suicide.

Riggs presents a sad story of Keith Vidal, 18, who was killed in North Carolina after threatening his mother with a screwdriver during a schizophrenic episode. His mother called the police; two officers restrained Vidal, and a third arrived and shot and killed Vidal. Riggs then shares two very disturbing quotes released in the press: “I don’t have time for this. Tase him. Let’s get him out of here,” said by the third and senior officer. When asked by the parents why Vidal was killed, the same officer said, “Well, I’m protecting my officers.” The Vidal family is devastated at the loss. The police have been called in the past to assist with Vidal, and they have always revolved the issue calmly.

Riggs then presents several examples where the police response to the mentally and disabled were inconsistent and damaging. All of these stories involve the situations escalating and resulting in damage and even death of a mentally ill or disabled individual. Riggs acknowledges that some of the calls to the police over the mentally ill do not result in disaster, but there is no data on this and you have no guarantee. He concludes with quotes from a social worker and a former police officer/professor on why the police aren’t really the best option in these situations.

I don’t disagree with anything Riggs says, but something about piece didn’t sit well with me, and then it occurred to me: poverty and mental illness. I know, I know, I’m always talking about poverty. But something about Riggs’ piece frustrated me. However, the homeless are disproportionally mentally ill. Without money and a support system, you can’t imagine the horror show that befalls the mentally ill. I also, know that part of my reaction to Riggs’ piece is my own guilt because I am uncomfortable with the situation, but I have no solution, and things cannot continue the way they have been.

Without getting into too many specifics, an extended family member spent the last month institutionalized. She was picked up by the police standing outside without a coat in frigid Cleveland temperatures clutching a piece of paper with a phone number on it. That is how the police contacted the family. She should not be released because she is a paranoid schizophrenic that hasn’t been 80% recovered since 1997, but she is on Medicaid, so one month then she is out and the family is responsible for finding her a place. She can’t live alone; she has but doesn’t take her meds. She can’t live with her family because she manipulates, lies, make horrifying accusations, and refuses medication. The patriarch of our family has been more or less handling it for years, 42 years to be exact, but the last fifteen without their parents. He can’t, physically, we were all afraid he was going to have a heart attack after an episode in church. There is no money for a private hospital or caregiver; she is too manipulative for a group home. She has to be monitored constantly, but she isn’t a danger to anyone except herself with the not taking her meds and starving herself.

When it comes down to it my frustration with Riggs’ piece is the simplistic nature of it, and I know it was a post online, how long could it possibly be? A family member’s mental illness can take over your life. Without resources there is no way to manage it, and unfortunately for the poor the police is one of the few resources we have left (not so much in Slavic Village, but I’ve ranted about our waning police force in the past). I have no solution, and neither does Riggs. So what do we do with the mentally ill who are threatening you in the street with a weapon if not call the police? I don’t think Riggs would disagree with me when I say law enforcement needs comprehensive training ranging from cultural sensitivity to prevent racial profiling to interventions with traumatized individuals.

In a way, what Riggs writes gave me an image of Russian roulette in my mind, but honestly, I feel like that is just the way things go for the low-income all the time. You sure you want to call the police over that domestic disturbance? Is this a state that has mandatory arrests? Will your partner you rely on for income be incarcerated? What does that mean for your kids? Sure you’re sick, but are you so sick you can’t go to work? Or can you pull through for the money? Sure, the police may show up and shoot your loved one, but otherwise your loved one might kill you, and you’re the only one responsible for him/her. These seem like extreme cases, but they’re not. And they are questions people should never have to ask themselves, but they do. So yeah, I’m glad my relative’s neighbor called the police after a few hours because I have no idea what would have happened if they didn’t. And I’m sorry that kid was murdered.

Self-immolation, mental illness, and the silencing of people

Let me begin with I’ve been very sick. No sympathy needed, but it explains my disappearance from the internet. Also, the blog takes a backseat to my one true passion: trolling Speaker John Boehner’s Twitter account. But onto the show.

I don’t want to sound flippant, this is actually a serious post. I heard on Friday afternoon a man self-immolated on the National Mall so I immediately looked for corroboration because that is a mighty big claim. First because while there is a lot of inequity going on in the States, but people aren’t yet ready to mobilize, which we saw with Occupy. Second, self-immolation is an act of political protest, but there was nothing in the initial articles that indicated a political motive. Regardless, I immediately deferred to JN who I believe to be a knowledgeable on the subject.

However, on Friday night, I heard there was a second self-immolation in Houston, Texas. The man said he couldn’t find a job before setting himself on fire. There were allegations that the first man was yelling about voting rights before he set himself on fire, and he died at the hospital.

According to witnesses, the man on the National Mall set up a tripod to film the self-immolation. They also reported that he was yelling about voting rights. We are all aware of the Supreme Court’s decision to gut portions of the Voting Rights Act making it much easier to discriminate against voters because racism is over (false), which leaves a lot of citizens’ vulnerable. The man was identified as a New Jersey resident. His family denies that it was a political act because he had mental illness.

So this makes me think about the woman who was executed after a car chase in DC. Both the woman and the man are called mentally ill, and no one is interested in looking any further than that. It is assumed that neither of these people could be possibly making a political act because they were mentally ill. I’m not sure that assertion can be made. Essentially, these people are rendered silent because they are mentally ill, but there are a lot of institutional failures and social inequity going on here, which could very well leave vulnerable populations feeling well more vulnerable.

We can see all these inequities internationally as well. We see self-immolations in Tibet and Korea, but we’re also seeing them in other countries such as Greece and Tunisia. The later sparking a revolution. Sarah Kendzior for Al Jazeera English pulled together a lengthy list of self-immolation in Europe. Most of these were caused by economic inequity.

I think we should have a conversation around how social inequity impacts mental illness, and how many people with mental illness are capable of making rational decisions.  These people need help, and they are unable to get it because the organizations and institutions just aren’t there.