The Disturbed violent offender /

Although only a small proportion of criminals are mentally ill, the group of violent offenders with mental health problems poses difficult dilemmas for criminal justice and mental health system personnel. In their most recent book, Toch (SUNY, Albany) and Adams (Castine Research Corporation, Maine) provide a wealth of detailed statistical information as well as rich clinical observations. After an excellent, broad-ranging introduction, chapters describe the research strategy; the results of the statistical analyses; offenders with histories of mental health problems, substance abuse histories, and no mental health-related histories; the disturbed violent offender; the extremely disturbed but minimally violent offender; and, finally, the extremely disturbed and extremely violent offender. For each type of offender, Toch and Adams detail offense type, violence level and history, alcohol/drug influence, eccentric behavior, IQ, arrest history, age, prison experience, and covariates, along with vignettes illustrating particular characteristics. The authors stress that future approaches must be multidimensional, using a wide range of interventions and expertise, and they call for "interdisciplinary confluence, interagency collaboration, and teaming in delivering services." Advanced undergraduates and up. -C. S. Widom, Indiana University--Bloomington