American Police and Prisons Are Failing the Mentally Ill [PSMag.com]
Earlier this month, police received a frantic phone call from the parents of Melissa Boarts . Their daughter had just threatened to slit her wrists, they explained to the police, and had then promptly driven off. Police allege that, when they caught up with Boarts, who was diagnosed with bipolar manic depression, she got out of her car, “armed with a weapon and charged the officers.” Officers shot and killed her. In the wake of their daughter’s death, Boarts’ parents have been adamant about...