MENTAL ILLNESS AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
Thursday, October 11, 2007
11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Radisson Hotel Manchester

Attorney General Kelly Ayotte is pleased to collaborate with the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New Hampshire and the Disability Rights Center to sponsor Mental Illness and the Criminal Justice System, an opportunity for professionals in the criminal justice system to come together to address the unique issues and challenges they face in responding to individuals with mental illness. Chief Justice John Broderick will introduce the program, which will include a keynote by Pete Earley, the author of “CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness”, which was one of two finalists for the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction books.

Pete Earley was cited by Washingtonian Magazine, in a cover story as one of a handful of journalists in America who "have the power to introduce new ideas and give them currency." He is the author of eight non-fiction books, including two national best sellers, three novels, and is a former reporter for The Washington Post. His books have sold more than one million copies worldwide.

“CRAZY: A Father’s Search Through America’s Mental Health Madness” tells two stories. The first is about Mr. Earley’s struggles to get his college age son help after he is diagnosed with a mental illness. The second is an investigation of America’s mental health system based on nine months that Mr. Earley spent inside the psychiatric cellblocks at the Miami Dade County city jail where he followed prisoners with mental illnesses through the justice system and back into the community to observe how they were treated.

He will be followed by a panel of New Hampshire criminal justice and mental health professionals who will discuss the issue from their discipline’s perspective, and what is happening in New Hampshire.

Attorney General Ayotte said, “The Attorney General's Office is pleased to bring so many professionals together to address mental illness and its tremendous impact on New Hampshire’s criminal justice system.”

For additional information, please contact: Sandra Matheson, Director, Office of Victim/Witness Assistance, Attorney General's Office, (603) 271-3671.