This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Finn, M. A. Articles by Stalans, L. J. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Police Handling of the Mentally Ill in Domestic Violence Situations

Georgia State University

Loretta J. Stalans

Loyola University of Chicago

This article provides a systematic test of the reasoning underlying officers' decisions to civilly commit or arrest hallucinating suspects of domestic violence. Police officers (N = 257) read hypothetical scripts that manipulated three conditions (the suspect's mental state, antagonism or cooperativeness between disputants, and presence or absence of victim injury) and responded to questions about their inferences and responses. Findings indicate that mentally ill husbands were not more likely to be arrested, but officers who blamed the victim or held stereotypic views supportive of the use of violence were less likely to arrest. Police officers who believed that mental hospitals typically accepted violent persons, perceived that severe harm to the victim was likely if the suspect remained in the home, and regarded the suspect as cooperative with them were more likely to seek civil commitment.

Criminal Justice and Behavior, Vol. 29, No. 3, 278-307 (2002)
DOI: 10.1177/0093854802029003003


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. S. Morabito Horizons of Context: Understanding the Police Decision to Arrest People With Mental Illness Psychiatr Serv, December 1, 2007; 58(12): 1582 - 1587. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. Mendias and E. J. Kehoe Engagement of Policing Ideals and Their Relationship to the Exercise of Discretionary Powers Criminal Justice and Behavior, February 1, 2006; 33(1): 70 - 92. [Abstract] [PDF]