Letter: Provide resources to help mentally ill

There is talk that counties could raise property taxes to help fund mental health services. While nobody likes the prospect of their taxes going up, providing key mental health services can and likely will save taxpayers money.

Many mentally-ill people end up in prison, simply because there is nowhere to put them. This practice takes up valuable bed space which should be reserved for violent offenders. In order to accommodate the growing population of inmates, we're always searching for more prison space, and building more prisons is expensive. We also must look at the social cost.

Once sent to prison, there is a permanent stigma attached. It doesn't matter how low-level the offense is, a person comes out with a mark on them that can never be fully erased. Job placement, housing and many services become almost impossible to obtain by people who've been incarcerated in a correctional institution. The mentally-ill who fall into this category have enough of a struggle. Throwing in a prison stint compounds their difficult integration into society. Many have to depend on welfare or fall through the cracks and can end up homeless.

For the truly violent offenders who have hurt others, prison is appropriate. For those whose only crime is mental illness, we must spend precious resources wisely, with the goal of treating their illness so they can once again become a productive member of society.

Dave Seavy

Rochester, Minn., formerly of Cedar Rapids