FILE PHOTO - Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth speaks to reporters at the legislature in Victoria, July 25, 2022.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Province of B.C.
September 21, 2022 - 3:30 PM
Mental health care for offenders in B.C. is "woefully inadequate" and needs a boost in funding, according to a provincial study into repeat offenders released today.
There are far fewer people serving time in prison since the COVID-19 pandemic, but the mental health issues for people in custody has grown more complex, the provincially funded study found.
The study, conducted by Doug LePard and Dr. Amanda Butler, looked at how the province addresses repeat offenders as cities across B.C. grapple with prolific criminals who continue to commit property and violent crimes.
Solicitor General Mike Farnworth and Attorney General Murray Rankin presented the findings today, Sept. 21, at a press conference, alongside Kelowna mayor Colin Basran and Victoria mayor Lisa Helps who are co-chairs of the B.C. Urban Mayors' Caucus.
Cities across the province, including Kamloops and Kelowna, have been struggling with offenders who continue to commit crimes, often while on bail conditions after being released from custody.
The number of people in custody has dropped in B.C. from 15,284 in 2019 to 9,165 in 2021.
B.C. Corrections is failing to meet the health needs for people in custody, with those inmates being "underserved" by psychologists and psychiatrists, the report said.
Property offenders often face too short of a sentence for "meaningful" intervention," the study said, and custody provides a "unique opportunity" to screen people for mental health supports.
"Unfortunately, there is a shortage of resources available to meet the needs of people who have been incarcerated when they are released," the report said.
Once people are released, many are returning to precarious housing situations, shelters or onto the streets where they are at "high-risk" of returning to crime.
The authors of the study have a long list recommendations for the province's criminal justice system, including boosting the number of probation officers and Crown lawyers to specifically manage prolific offenders.
Among the few immediate commitments from the province, Farnworth, who is also the minister of public safety, said a prolific offenders management team will be renewed in B.C.
In total, the study includes 28 recommendations, and Farnworth said its findings "fit with work already underway."
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