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The State of Mental Healthcare in America
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The State of Mental Healthcare in America

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Mentally ill people may threaten violence. Most never come through. But should laws protecting their privacy and their freedom be changed, just in case? Would that mean treating sick people like criminals before they've done anything wrong? Also, the first anniversary of Haiti's devastating earthquake.

Banner image: A copy of the written statement from the family of Jared Lee Loughner is seen outside of his home on January 11, 2011 in Tucson, Arizona. Photo: David Becker/Getty Images

Making News

House Resolution Condemns Arizona Shooting ()

On Capitol Hill today, members of Congress honored the dead and wounded from Saturday's shooting in Tucson. Minority leader Nancy Pelosi said her colleague Gabrielle Giffords provided a model for appropriate behavior. Republican majority leader Eric Cantor said Giffords was not the only target, calling the shooting an "attack on the very essence of democracy and representative government." Behind closed doors, members were briefed on security measures when they're dealing with their constituents at home. Jennifer Steinhauer reports on Congress for the New York Times.

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Main Topic

Mental Illness and the Threat of Violence ()

This weekend, Tucson joined Virginia Tech, Fort Hood and the Holocaust Museum as locations of mass killings that have rocked the nation. Were there warning signs that disturbed people might commit mayhem? During five disruptions in classrooms and libraries, Jared Loughner frightened teachers and classmates at Pima Community College. Police were used to deliver a letter telling him he couldn't come back unless he got "mental health clearance" indicating he was not "a danger to himself or others." In the aftermath of Saturday's shooting, were there signs that should have provoked action? Did the college drop the ball? Do laws about mental illness and privacy require that we wait too long, or are they needed to protect sick people from misunderstanding and over-reaction?

Guests:
  • David Leibow: Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Columbia University
  • Brian Stettin: Policy Director, Treatment Advocacy Center
  • David Shern: President and CEO, Mental Health America
  • Amy Hellman: mother of two bi-polar children
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Reporter's Notebook

The First Anniversary of the Haiti Earthquake ()

One year ago today Haiti lost some 300,000 people to an earthquake that registered 7.0. Ten million survivors declared today a national holiday. But despite billions in promised international aid and plans to "build it back better," so much rubble has yet to be cleared that recovery hasn't even begun. Jacqueline Charles is in Port-au-Prince for the Miami Herald.

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