Risk, Security and Surveillance: The Care and Control of People with Serious Mental Health Problems

Abstract

Media reports of people murdered by individuals with serious mental health problems have caused a sense of moral panic in the U.K. The government proposes greater powers of compulsory treatment and detention for such individuals. These proposals have been widely criticized by mental health professionals and civil libertarians. The government, however, argues that community care for the most seriously and potentially dangerous individuals has failed. Its insistence upon compulsory detention and treatment is one further example of a drift towards increasing security-minded surveillance of difficult groups. This surveillance is predicated not on a caring basis where risks can be effectively managed but on exclusionary and compulsory means. In contrast, Madison, Wisconsin operates a successful system of community care. There, even the most seriously ill individuals are frequently treated in the community so that they can exercise their civil rights to enjoy as normal and independent a life as possible.