The Mentally Retarded in Penal and Correctional Institutions

Rate and characteristics of men with an intellectual disability in pre‐trial detention

“…Estimated rates in US prisons vary between 0.2% and 14% (e.g., Brown & Courtless, 1968;Denkowski & Denkowski, 1985;MacEachron, 1979;Petersilia, 1997), with slightly higher rates found in the UK (Birmingham, Mason, & Grubin, 1996;Gunn, Maden, & Swinton, 1991;Murphy, Harnett, & Holland, 1995). More recently, ID rates of 28% have been reported in the Irish prison system (Mulrooney, Murphy, Harrold, & Carey, 2004;Murphy, Harrold, Carey, & Mulrooney, 2000).…”

The Mentally Retarded Inmate: Prison Adjustment and Implications for Treatment

“…McGovern (1976) found the mentally retarded prisoner often was hampered in adjustment to prison by inability to tolerate frustration or delay gratification, poor impulse control, and unpredictable motivation. Further complications for prison adjustment resulted from the retarded offender's propensity to be easily manipulated by more intelligent inmates (Menolascino, 1974;Rowan, 1976;Santamour & West, 1978).…”

Examination of Racial Disparity in Competency to Stand Trial Between White and African American Retarded Defendants

“…According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (U.S. Department of Justice, 1996), almost 1 in every 10 African Americans, but only 1 in every 50 White Americans, who are aged 18 years or older, are under correctional supervision. Consistent with official statistics, researchers (Brown & Courtless, 1968;Garcia & Steele, 1988;Haskins & Friel, 1973;Ho, 1996;Noble & Conley, 1992;Steiner, 1984) reveal that a disproportionate number of incarcerated mentally retarded offenders are African Americans. Racial disparity in criminal offenders with mental retardation becomes apparently distinctive.…”

“…Researchers (Gottfried, 1984;Keltner, 1994) find that a child's mental retardation is associated with an impoverished home environment. Mentally retarded criminal offenders are also predominately racial minority members (Brown & Courtless, 1968;Ho, 1996;Petersilia, 1997;Steiner, 1984), and they are likely to be raised in economically impoverished families (Denkowski, Denkowski, & Mabli, 1984;Haskins & Friel, 1973;Hochstedler, 1987). Due to a low IQ and severe deficits in adaptive skills, mentally retarded criminal offenders are strictly limited in educational achievement, work capability, and independent living skills.…”