Tweet

Scott Hechinger

1 Apr, 15 tweets, 4 min read

READ: "Rose didn’t want her daughter arrested; that wasn’t why she called. It would only hurt her daughter. But the police didn’t listen. They arrested Anna. And the familiar nightmare began."
On our irrational, traumatic responses to mental health crises.currentaffairs.org/2021/03/our-no…

How it starts: "Rose (57) & Anna (31) were arguing. Anna threw a plate down too hard. The plate bounced up & hit her mom's nose, which didn’t stop bleeding. Out of an abundance of caution, Rose dialed 911 & asked for medical help. Help did come—but so did 3 armed officers."

"As Rose received attention for her nose, cops asked her a series of questions. Yes, her nose was hurting. She didn’t need an ambulance. No, her daughter didn’t mean to hurt her. And she suffers from bipolar disorder & schizophrenia and sometimes loses control of her emotions."

"Police shootings & killings don’t tell the full story of the impact of criminalization of mental health. Everyday, families end up on the receiving end of “help” that only hurts. Family desires are steamrolled by police & prosecutors. The “solution” only creates a new problem."

An arrest alone: "Is deeply traumatic & violent. Anna, a young woman in need of help, was forced into the back of a police car. Cuffs too tight. Then caged on a cold cement bench w/ strangers for more than 18 hours. No clocks. Guards didnt answer simple questions. Terrified."

Criminalization of mental health is costly: "Emotional toll. Over $100 billion taxpayers spend on “solutions” that only make matters worse. And families have to pay money they can’t afford to bail their loved ones out of jail. Rose had to scrape together the money to free Anna."

Criminalization of mental health issues separates families. Rose didn't know an order of protection was issued & brought Anna home. "A police officer woke Anna up in her own bed & handcuffed her. Body camera captured Rose’s frantic pleas as Anna was again escorted to a cop car."

Criminalization of mental health issues is oppressive. Rose spent more than 6 months pleading with prosecutors to let the matter go, drop the charges, & send her daughter home. Rose was without her daughter & primary caretaker for the better part of nine months."

🔥🔥 This truth: "If you asked the police or prosecutors, they would tell you that Rose was the victim here. Rose would say that she was the victim of an inappropriate response to a mental health crisis and society’s over-reliance on police to intervene in every social issue."

"I wish I could say that these are just isolated cases. But such tragedies are 'normal.' We as a society are limited by what we are used to—the 'normal' way of doing things."

The author is a public defender who specializes in mental health in Houston, TX: currentaffairs.org/2021/03/our-no…

"In the context of the criminalization of mental health issues, however, 'normal' really just means frequent & cruel. We can’t claim to care about human beings, rational policy, fiscal responsibility, or health & safety while claiming that what happened to Rose & Anna is normal."

What's right: "Problems that arise from mental health are complex & require professionals who approach the work from a place of trauma-informed care, sensitivity, & help. They need to have a broader and deeper understanding of appropriate responses, services, and interventions."

"The complexities surrounding crises in mental health call for a public health response. Calls to help people experiencing mental health crises can be more safely & effectively addressed by community organizations & non-law enforcement responders." vice.com/en/article/y3z…

"Getting people the care & services they need is public safety—it is crime prevention. There are ample models of non-police response around the country that work. If these models became the norm, we could save taxpayer money, families’ trauma & heartbreak, and yes, Black lives."

"Its time we scrap “normal” and talk more about how things should be. How we might bridge the great gaping spaces between our historical expectations & actual needs. And what that might mean for millions of our loved ones living with mental health issues."currentaffairs.org/2021/03/our-no…

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

More from @ScottHech

Scott Hechinger

@ScottHech

1 Apr

@hrw

🚨SIGNIFICANT MOMENT. Human Rights Watch (@hrw) has issued a warning to all state leaders with the power to act to correct past wrongs--U.S. governors, mayors, attorneys general, prosecutors. Your failure to do so violates international human rights standards. First stop: Oregon.

"When a legal system has obtained convictions through a discriminatory mechanism for decades, it should take on the task of fixing its mistake. Denial of equal rights for decades outweighs concerns about court efficiency."

@EllenRosenblum

In May 2020, US Supreme Court held that convictions by non-unanimous juries are unconstitutional, motivated by racial and ethnic bias. Yet Oregon’s AG @EllenRosenblum refuses to allow those whose appeals happened to be final before the decision a new trial.

Read 14 tweets

Scott Hechinger

@ScottHech

30 Mar

@hrw

THREAD: Imagine having power to end the impact of a KKK-passed law that still imprisons hundreds. Oregon AG Ellen Rosenblum has power, but won't use it.

Human Rights Watch (@hrw) just called her failure to act “inconsistent w/ international human rights standards." Just wow.

In May 2020, US Supreme Court held that non-unanimous juries were motivated by racial & ethnic bias. Yet Oregon’s AG is *refusing* to allow this new Supreme Court rule to apply to those whose appeals happened to be final before the decision. They're still in prison. "Too bad."

@hrw

Human Rights Watch (@hrw):

Ellen Rosenblum’s failure to end the racist stain of #JimCrowJuries is “arbitrary” and “inconsistent with international human rights standards requiring states to eliminate racial discrimination, including structural discrimination.”

Read 11 tweets

Scott Hechinger

@ScottHech

29 Mar

IMAGINE: Having power to end the impact of a KKK-passed law that still imprisons hundreds. Oregon AG Ellen Rosenblum has that power, but won't use it. Instead she *turned down an interview w/ PBS* as she "awaits more guidance" from the Supreme Court. More: pbs.org/newshour/show/…

Every juror’s voice is supposed to matter. Yet Oregon & Louisiana allowed up to 2 jurors to be silenced. KKK pushed these laws to establish white supremacy. To convict whoever they wanted. Legal lynchings. Louisiana already acted to fix. Oregon wont.

In April 2020, the Supreme Court finally acknowledged what was long obvious: This racist law was unconstitutional. in oral argument, the majority of the Justices were appalled. Even Justice Kavanaugh acknowledged non-unanimous juries were "rooted in racism."

Read 9 tweets

Scott Hechinger

@ScottHech

28 Mar

When I hear of a 13 & 15 year old charged w/ murder:

I dont think "killer." I think "child."
I dont think "punishment." I think "help."
I dont think "murder." I think "tragedy" for all.

We can call for justice for Mohammad Anwar w/o calling for the heads of young black girls.

For all of those claiming I'm "racializing" this by & wouldn't have said the same if they were white, clearly you don't know me. I don't think children should be punished as adults. And I don't think prison helps anyone. Survivors or families of survivors included.

The idea that prison is not a place for people charged with acts of violence or a solution to violence is so foreign & crazy to so most. But by any measure--rehabilitation, accountability, reducing recidivism, healing trauma for survivors, deterrence--prison just fails.

Read 12 tweets

Scott Hechinger

@ScottHech

28 Mar

🚨 MARIJUANA JUSTICE. A deal has been reached. This isn’t merely “legalization.” It’s also repairing the harm exacted on Black & Brown communities. A model for the nation. Early this week, the NY legislature will vote. Then onto Gov. Cuomo. Thread w/ more: nytimes.com/2021/03/25/nyr…

In NYC, the average marijuana arrest rate among high marijuana arrest precincts is 15 times higher than low arrest precincts. Between 2010-2019, there were 8 times as many arrests of Black and Latinx people as white people for marijuana.

In Buffalo, the average marijuana arrest rate among the high marijuana arrest zip codes is 68 times higher than that of the low arrest zip codes, and there were 3 times as many marijuana arrests of Black people as there were of white people. #PassTheMRTA

Read 10 tweets