Research Paper
In January 2012 Freddie DabneyIII died by driving His Car into the James River. Authorities ruled that the cause of Death was suicide. The Suicide rate in Virginia has been continually rising. In 2011/2012 it was reported that the suicide rate reached an all time high at 13 Suicides in one year. This has been the highest number of suicides in Virginia for almost a decade. According to the States Medical Examiner Office, Virginians’ are three times more likely to die from a Suicide then a Homicide. The Medical Examiner’s Office said that the stress of Unemployment, relationship problems, and the lack to access Mental Health Resources all played a part in the rising Suicide numbers. Suicide is the act of a person taking His or Her own Life. Who is more likely to commit suicide in prison males or Females? Is there a way that we can prevent Suicide? Suicide can be prevented; most people who commit Suicide do show signs of constant …show more content…
stress and frustration or Depression. (Virginia Department of Health)
90% or People who kill themselves have a Diagnosable and treatable Mental Illness. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in The United States of America. In 2007 the Number of People who died from Suicide was 34,598. 395,320 people were treated in emergency departments for self inflicting Injuries. The numbers of attempted suicides are always higher than suicide, it is estimated that there are 25 attempted suicides for every suicide. Females from Virginia reported that they had Mental Health Disorders more than Males. For Males that’s not good because reporting that you have a Mental health Disorder means that you actually went to get help and receive treatment, and when it comes to that females seek help more than Males. (Medical Examiner’s Office 2008)
In 2007 the CDC (Center of Disease Control) in Virginia conducted a survey to Measure attitudes regarding Mental Health Issues. 90% of Virginians agreed with the statement “Treatment can help persons who have Mental Illnesses”. Only 54% Virginians agreed with the statement “People are caring and sympathetic to others that has a Mental Disorder. Suicide can be prevented we just have be willing to be more caring and concerned about people who has Mental Disorders. Between 2008 and 2011 there were 4,344 Suicide Deaths in a 5-Year Suicide rate of 11.4 per 100,000 people Population in Virginia. Suicide was the 7th leading cause of Death in Virginia. (Virginia Health Department2008)
During this Period of time the leading Mechanism of committing Suicide was Firearms (57.3%) The second leading Mechanism was Suffocation (18.6%).
The rest of Mechanisms of committing Suicide in Virginia are as follows, Poisoning (17.7%), Cut/Peirce (17.7%), fall (1.73%), Drowning (1.38%), (1.5%) of suicides were by other means. Virginians of the age 30 and older has the highest rate of Suicide; the suicide rate for people 35 and older was 18.6 per 100,000. The second age group that had the Highest Suicide rate was youth 15-25 years old. Youth from the age 15-25 years old had a Suicide rate of 15.5 per 100,000. In 2004 to 2008 there were a total of 3,420 Suicides, so from 2008 to 2011 the amounts of Suicides increased over a thousand. (Medical Examiner Office Of
Virginia2008)
The Suicide rate for Males in Virginia was 3.6 times higher than Females. The Male Suicide rate was 17.9 per 100,000; the Female Suicide rate was 5.2 per 100,000. The leading cause of Suicide for males was the use of Firearms. Out of all the Males that committed Suicide63.5% of them used Firearms to commit Suicide. For Females the leading cause of Suicide was Poisoning, 38.8% of females that committed Suicide did it by poisoning their selves. The Suicide rate for race varies but no race significantly outweighs the other. Even though the Suicide rate for Caucasians in Virginia are higher than the other races in Virginia, the Suicide rate in Virginia for a Caucasian person rate is only 2.4 times higher than African American person in Virginia.
Suicide is the Leading Cause of Death for Inmates in Custody. In 2009 303 Inmates died due to the action of Suicide. The total Number of Suicides in prison for both Male and Females is 2,894. Sadly the Total number of Suicides for Male Inmates was 2,661, and for Female inmates were 232. Why do Male Inmates commit suicide more than Female Inmates? There are more male Inmates than Female Inmates. In 2009 the males made up most of the Jail Population, 88% percent of the Jail population was males. Suicide rates in Jail have decreased every year 2008-2011. The Suicide rate went from 49 Deaths per 100,000 to 36 Deaths per 100,000. The male suicide rate was 43 per 100,000 Inmates in custody, and the Female Inmate rate was 12 deaths per 100,000. Though There More males in Prison that Females why is a Male 3 times more likely to commit suicide? When being Incarcerated Female Inmates receive more constant therapy and counseling than Male Inmates. In 1993 the BOP(Board of prisons) developed a special program for Female Inmates. This is special help for Female Inmates and its mainly used for them because its proven that a Female is 5 times less likely to commit a violent crime than a Male. This program is almost like a second chance in life. (U.S. Department of Justice Programs2009)
When a Female is arrested and charged for a crime, their time to serve and sentence is lenient when compared to Males. During Incarceration Female Inmates receive Educational and Recreation programs. They also are given an opportunity to take Job Training and programs to assist Female Inmates to be better Woman, This was implemented by the U.S Department of Labor. The BOP offers Females Inmates the best Rehabilitation programs possible. Female Inmates apprenticeship programs offer special classes that give Females an opportunity to pick up a Trade. There are up to 40 different Trade programs for Female Inmates. The BOP also has special Mental Health Disorder Programs for Female Inmates. Remember Mental Health Disorders are the number 1 risk factor for Suicide.
In 1994 A sheriff by the Name of Jim Pendegraph made a commitment to improve the treatment Programs for Male Inmates. These programs are supposed to help Male Inmates and address the reason why they are incarcerated. These Programs include Therapeutic, educational and Literacy Programs, While Incarcerated Male Inmates who are eligible may be allowed to receive treatment. This isn’t a Law Implemented by the BOP though, this is something a Local Sheriff came up with to better the Community. It is known that while in Prison Females receive more treatment and better opportunities to better themselves than Males. Female Inmates also receive More Therapy for Mental Health Disorders than Males. Because of the advantages that Female Inmates have over Male Inmates this is the reason why Males commit Suicide More than Females. In Society period Males commit Suicide more than Females, because Females get treated more for their Mental Health Disorders that Males. When a Female has a Mental Health Disorder she is more likely to report it and attempt to receive Help. Males don’t report the fact that they have mental issues and this risk factor is the main reason Males commit Suicide more than Females. (Medical Examiner’s Office of Virgin2009)
Suicide in Virginia and in the U.S is a problem that needs to be approach and talk about more in Society. Only 54% of people in Virginia agreed with the fact that people are caring to others that has a Mental Health Disorder. As a Country and Community we need to start paying more attention to those people who are going stress and Depression. For the Male Inmates that are in Jails I feel like that they deserve the attention and opportunity to better them like the Females do. Society doesn’t realize that if we give Male Inmates the same opportunity the Female Inmates receive, not only will the number of Suicide in prison will decrease but Suicide in the world will Decrease also
Medical Examiner Office of Virginia
Works Cited www.virginia Health.gov
U.S Department of Justice 2009
Medical Examiner office Of Virgnia 2008
Virginia Department Of Health 2008
www.vdh.gov