Maia Institute

10/13/2025

An investigation is underway after an inmate died at the Northeast Correctional Complex in Mountain City, Tennessee, with no further details released.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/inmate-death-under-investigation-northeast-140419130.html?guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAIYSsx8tPvDZMrVIDjnt6ugxSnds3LkIzydvjthDJWmW1srAFg6zRQ4kycLClfJpFHskMD_MBUGHMMUK9Z2WkKc5Duenr24akWS0ejDCaHUhZbzby9AvaBQVRCJ9RYOWxT9QKKy6a8AyfkxWBwmR90eF3NCn_lOWlcium19FmEc7&guccounter=2

MOUNTAIN CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) — An investigation is underway after an inmate died at Northeast Correctional Complex in Mountain City on Tuesday. A spokesperson with the Tennessee Department of Correction confirmed to News Channel 11 that the inmate died early Tuesday morning. The incident is under i...

10/10/2025

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Education Secretary Linda McMahon argued in a Washington Post op-ed that schools should eliminate mental health screenings and therapy, favoring natural supports like strong families, nutrition, fitness, and hope. They questioned Illinois’ new law requiring school screenings, saying such tests wrongly medicalize children’s behavior and risk creating lifelong stigma.
https://www.nhpr.org/2025-09-16/rfk-jr-wants-to-end-mental-health-screenings-in-schools-experts-say-its-a-bad-idea

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and Education Secretary Linda McMahon are against schools giving kids standardized questionnaires about their mental well-being. But experts say they are wrong.

10/08/2025

Options Behavioral Health Hospital in Indianapolis will close on Oct. 9, according to its operator, Acadia Healthcare, which declined to explain the decision or discuss other facilities. The closure follows a year of investigations into serious allegations, including patients being held for insurance money, understaffing that led to violence, sexual abuse claims, and failure to call 911 for an injured child.
https://www.healthleadersmedia.com/ceo/after-years-abuse-allegations-options-behavioral-health-shutting-down

10/06/2025

Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, accused of killing 10 people in a 2021 Colorado supermarket shooting, admitted he bought fi****ms to commit a mass shooting and implied he wanted police to kill him. Forensic psychologist Loandra Torres testified that Alissa, who has schizophrenia, was found competent to stand trial and acknowledged that guns with his fingerprints could be used as evidence. He faces multiple murder and attempted murder charges but has not yet entered a plea.
https://apnews.com/article/supermarket-mass-shooting-king-soopers-colorado-19e5e581747456e2d1d3e059d98aa9a1

The man accused of killing 10 people at a Colorado supermarket in 2021 said during a mental health evaluation that he bought fi****ms to carry out a mass shooting and wanted police to kill him.

10/03/2025

Hawaii’s Act 26 was designed to divert mentally ill individuals charged with nonviolent petty misdemeanors away from jail and into treatment, initially saving money and reducing wait times for mental health assessments. However, five years later, admissions to the state hospital under the law have surged nearly 2,000%, overwhelming the system while many individuals are released without meaningful treatment or adequate community support. As a result, most return to the streets, often still struggling with untreated psychosis or addiction, highlighting the law’s shortcomings.
https://apnews.com/article/hawaii-law-mentally-ill-revolving-door-e700fcb629d5d6dba4003b7dad88cfe8

A Hawaii program aimed at reducing the time people with mental illness can be held at the state hospital after being arrested for nonviolent misdemeanors initially reduced the stays and saved the state money.

10/01/2025

Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, has been chosen as one of seven sites for regional behavioral health summits aimed at addressing the state’s growing mental health crisis, according to the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts. The initiative, part of the Behavioral Health in the Courts program, seeks to connect defendants with treatment and break the cycle of crisis, arrest, and recidivism. The series will bring together courts, providers, and community partners to improve outcomes for people with serious mental and behavioral health issues.
https://www.citizensvoice.com/2025/08/31/courts-to-host-summits-to-address-mental-health-crisis/

Luzerne County is one of seven locations across the state that have been selected to host a series of regional summits to address a growing mental and behavioral health crisis that has been sweepin…

09/29/2025

Experts propose three federal actions to improve care for people with serious mental illness and disabilities impacted by deinstitutionalization. They suggest the Department of Justice clarify its interpretation of the Olmstead v. L.C. (1999) ruling, emphasize that voluntary facility-based treatment is permitted alongside community care, and revise ADA guidance to support innovative community-based programs. These steps aim to expand treatment options while protecting patient rights.
https://www.city-journal.org/article/olmstead-v-lc-homelessness-mental-illness-treatment

09/26/2025

The Utah Supreme Court has halted the ex*****on of Ralph Leroy Menzies, a 67-year-old death row inmate convicted of killing Maurine Hunsaker in 1986, after his attorneys argued his dementia makes him unfit for ex*****on. Menzies, who chose a firing squad decades ago, would have been the sixth U.S. prisoner executed this way since 1977. The court ruled his competency must be reevaluated, citing a substantial decline in his mental state after 37 years on death row.
https://www.kcra.com/article/utah-supreme-court-blocks-firing-squad-ex*****on-dementia/65936350

The impending ex*****on of a man by firing squad in Utah has been blocked by the state’s Supreme Court. His attorneys argued 67-year-old Ralph Leroy Menzies should be spared because he has dementia.

09/24/2025

A California couple has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging its chatbot ChatGPT encouraged their 16-year-old son, Adam Raine, to take his own life. Court documents include chat logs showing Adam shared suicidal thoughts and self-harm photos, with the program allegedly validating his distress instead of directing him to proper help. OpenAI expressed sympathy, acknowledged system failures in sensitive situations, and said it is reviewing the case.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgerwp7rdlvo

The Raine family alleges ChatGPT "actively helped" their 16-year-old son take his own life.

09/22/2025

Authorities in Madbury, New Hampshire are investigating a suspected murder-su***de after Emily Long, her husband Ryan Long, and two of their children were found dead from apparent gunshot wounds; their toddler survived. Autopsies at the NH Medical Examiner’s Office will clarify the cause and timeline. Ryan Long, a school psychologist, and Emily Long, a UNH graduate, are remembered as reports note Ryan may have been battling brain cancer.
https://indepthnh.org/2025/08/19/father-identified-in-madbury-murder-su***de-was-school-psychologist-at-oyster-river/

The festive photo on Emily Long's page gave no hint of what could have gone so horribly wrong that led to what police believe is a murder/su***de in her death and the deaths of her husband, Ryan Long, son Parker Long, 8, and daughter Ryan Long, 6. A third child, a toddler, was found alive a...

09/19/2025

The death of Iraqi psychiatrist Dr. Ban Ziyad on Aug. 4 in Basra, ruled a su***de, has stirred controversy amid doubts about the official report. With over 100,000 Instagram followers, Ziyad’s passing raises questions on mental health, social pressure, and Iraq’s justice system.

Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council announced on Monday the closure of the investigation into the death of Dr. Ban Ziyad, a young psychiatrist from Basra

09/17/2025

Alabama has temporarily stayed the Aug. 21 ex*****on of David Lee Roberts pending a competency evaluation to determine if he understands his punishment. Convicted in 1992, Roberts was set to be executed by nitrogen gas, but the court ordered further review of his mental state.
https://www.wvtm13.com/article/alabama-ex*****on-stayed-david-roberts-marion-evaluation/65792050

A state judge stayed an upcoming ex*****on in Alabama to evaluate whether the man is too mentally ill to be put to death.