WaPo cites ‘experts’ who claim institutionalizing mentally ill criminals is ‘draconian’

The Washington Post cited so-called “experts” in a piece published on Wednesday who argued that institutionalizing criminals with a mental illness is “draconian” and “inhumane.”

Decarlos Brown had previously been convicted on 14 separate charges at the time that he fatally stabbed 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a light train in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Aug. 22. The Post attempted to blame the tragic murder on prisons failing to treat Brown’s schizophrenia while he served sentences for his crimes in the article, “Trump blames Democrats for Charlotte stabbing. Records complicate the story.”

“Other criminal justice experts disagreed, saying that permanently confining people who are mentally ill for minor offenses is a ‘draconian’ and inhumane response. There is no evidence that Brown received mental health treatment during his years in prison. A spokesman for the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction said he could not discuss the medical or mental health treatment of any offender,” the Post wrote.

The Post then quoted James E. Coleman Jr., a professor at Duke Law School, who said there is simply no easy solution to preventing violent crime and that locking up mentally ill people is not an option.

“If you were able to lock up mentally ill people and throw away the key, there are all kinds of draconian things that could have been done,” Coleman told the Post. “But I don’t think that anybody has thought that’s what this country’s criminal justice system is about, and there is not one Republican state that does that. What could a Republican have done to prevent a mentally ill person from senselessly stabbing a person on the light-rail train? … I guarantee you, if there was a way to prevent crime that was easy, I can’t imagine there is any police chief in America who would not adopt those policies.”

The article highlighted that Brown recently served prison sentences for so-called “minor” crimes, including his “misdemeanor charge of abusing the 911 system.” Brown served five years behind bars for robbing a man at gunpoint in August 2014 near Charlotte, and was released in September 2020. He also spent time in jail for felony larceny and breaking and entering.

Within months of his release, Brown faced more criminal charges for assaulting his sister.

North Carolina Magistrate Judge Teresa Stokes released Brown without bail in January and simply handed him a “written promise” to show up to court. Following his release, Brown immediately started acting erratically, which led his own mother to kick him out of her house.

Brown’s mother did not want her own son released into the public because of his violent behavior and mental health.

The article highlighted that while a judge granted a motion for Brown to be evaluated by a mental health specialist, there is no evidence that it occurred. There is also no evidence that Brown received any treatment when a judge released him onto the public streets.

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