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The Criminalization Of Mental Illness: How Theoretical Failures Create Real Problems In The Criminal Justice System, Georgia L. Sims

Vanderbilt Law Review

When Andrea Yates drowned her five children, she believed she was preventing Satan from infiltrating their souls. Rusty Yates blamed both the mental health system and the criminal justice system for his wife's actions and also for her initial conviction. Andrea Yates suffered from post-partum depression and psychosis; had attempted suicide twice; had been hospitalized on several occasions for psychiatric treatment; and was found not guilty by reason of insanity in her 2006 retrial.' Although Yates likely will spend the rest of her life in a mental institution, she will receive mental health treatment throughout her time at the facility. …