11th August 2011
In a comprehensive article in the Medical Independent, June Shannon examines whether the State is meeting the basic human rights of Irish prisoners with a mental illness in an overcrowded and decaying jail system.
Along with an examation of recent inspection reports, including those by the CPT and the Inspector of Prisons, the article looks at a recent position paper entitled Forensic Mental Health Services For Adults in Ireland published by the Mental Health Commission (MHC).
The reporter also spoke about the issues to John Lonergan, former Governor of Mountjoy Prison and Dr Conor O'Neill, consultant forensic psychiatrist and Chair of the Faculty of Forensic Psychiatry at the College of Psychiatry of Ireland, who developed the highly successful Prison In-Reach and Court Liaison Service (PICLS).
Read more:
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.