Study: Suicide rate 3 times higher for people in jail than prison, general public

Feb. 24 (UPI) -- The rate of suicide is nearly three times higher among people detained in U.S. jails compared with those in prisons or in the general public, a study published Thursday indicates.

Of the 736 men and women held in a large metropolitan jail in the Midwest, 6.7% said they had threatened suicide or self-harm in jail in the previous three months and 4.5% said they attempted suicide or self-harm in jail over the past year.

Over the previous three months to one year, 8.4% said they threatened or attempted suicide or self-harm.

The attempted suicide rate in the general population, meanwhile, is 0.6%, according to the study.

In general, jails hold people who have been arrested for crimes and are either awaiting court appearances or have been sentenced to shorter imprisonments, while prisons hold convicts who have received longer prison sentences. According to the study, the average jail stay is about 23 days.

"The reality is that many more individuals attempt, contemplate or threaten suicide prior to a fatal suicide attempt in a jail setting, and self-harming behaviors may be a risk factor or precursor for more serious attempts on one's life," said Calli Cain, senior author and an assistant professor in Florida Atlantic University's School of Criminology and Criminal Justice.

Researchers said there is one death for every 80 suicide attempts at U.S. correctional facilities, and suicide is the leading cause of death within U.S. jails. Forty percent of deaths take place within seven days of the person's admission to jail.

"The high rate of suicide in our jails over the last 20 years also suggests that the conventional approach of isolating individuals such as on suicide watch who admit to or are suspected of wanting to hurt themselves is insufficient, especially since most individuals who die by suicide in jail are not on suicide watch at the time of their passing," Cain said.

The study, carried out by FAU's College of Social Work and Criminal Justice, was published in the journal Corrections.

Study authors said their findings show "very little attention" has been paid to understanding why the suicide and self-harm rate is higher among jail detainees and what factors play a role.

"Researchers have long recognized the shock and lack of control associated with circumstances and surroundings in jail such as disorientation, abrupt separation from social support and society, and the degree of degradation and interpersonal conflict that arise from being incarcerated," Cain said. "However, the extent to which these experiences culminate in a propensity for suicide and self-harm remains understudied."

Other findings from the study indicate:

-- Detainees in protective custody are seven times more likely to threaten or attempt suicide or self-harm compared with the general population.

-- First-time jail detainees are 61% more likely to threaten suicide or self-harm.

-- Men are 64% less likely than women to threaten or attempt suicide or self-harm.

-- People with substance dependence issues are two times more likely to attempt suicide or self-harm.

-- For every violent incident witnessed in jail, detainees' rate of threatening or attempting suicide or self-harm more than doubled.

-- People who were homeless prior to detention were more than twice as likely to threaten or attempt suicide or self-harm.

-- Detainees assaulted by another detainee were 2.5 times more likely to threaten suicide or self-harm.