Tenn. inmate’s mutilation highlights prison mental care woes

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Three years before Tennessee death row inmate Henry Hodges cut off his own penis during what his lawyer called a “psychiatric disturbance,” a fellow prisoner told a federal judge that Hodges was being mistreated. Hodges was kept for three decades in solitary confinement, which experts say is detrimental to a person’s mental health even over short periods. Although his act of self-mutilation is extreme, it underscores the significant, unaddressed mental health care needs of prisoners. In Tennessee alone, Correction Department records categorize nearly 23% of inmates as having a “serious and persistent mental illness.” Meanwhile an audit of the state’s prison system has raised questions about whether it has done enough to confront the crisis.