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‘The suffering here is egregious’: Massive backlog of mentally ill defendants waiting in jail for treatment
Mentally ill defendants in the state of Washington are sitting in jail for record wait times for psychiatric help – a violation of state law and court orders.
Author: Susannah Frame
Published: 9:29 AM PDT October 19, 2022
Updated: 7:22 PM PDT October 19, 2022
SEATTLE — The state of Washington is experiencing a self-described “crisis” with the biggest backlog in state history of mentally ill defendants sitting in jails waiting for court-ordered access to medical help.
Record-breaking wait times behind bars for people with serious mental illness – defendants deemed unable to understand the charges against them – are creating chaos, suffering, and a potentially massive financial toll for the state.
The KING 5 Investigators found the failure to comply with court orders and state law to move defendants deemed incompetent to stand trial into state psychiatric hospitals in a timely manner could cost the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) $300 million in fines that are currently in abeyance.
“It’s obviously a big concern,” said Dr. Brian Waiblinger, DSHS chief medical officer and acting medical director at Western State Hospital in Steilacoom near Tacoma.
“That’s the taxpayer’s dollars, so of course, it’s concerning. I would rather have those dollars spent on patient services than fulfilling some sort of fine that doesn’t go directly to patient care.”...