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Abstract

In the criminal law, with few exceptions, for a finding of guilt, the physical act and the state of mind to commit the offense must be present at the time of the commission of the offense. People with mental disabilities often lack the state of mind required to commit the offense for which they are eventually charged for and or convicted. This paper examines the effectiveness of some past and present criminal justice system interventions that addresses the mental health disabilities of criminal offenders pre-adjudicative proceedings. A systematic review of the literature was used to examine past and present criminal justice system crisis interventions either by itself or in collaboration with other mental health agencies. The literature review shows no strong body of evidence to support that interventions have been very effective but some progress has been made in certain areas. There is a need to continue to make improvements to present criminal justice interventions to meet up with the developments in the mental health arena. Further inquiry and research in this area is suggested.

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