What does the inside of a Mental Institution cell look like?
It depends on the institution. Some are like prisons, others like hospitals, and still others like college dorms. I knew the Chief of Guards in what was then an Institution for the Criminally Insane. He retired shortly before the place was ‘updated’. After that, guards were required to take classes to become registered nurses, and had very limited rights. The criminals, however, were given extensive rights, including the right to sue for what they considered maltreatment. The latter could mean anything from being verbally abused or ignored to not getting their choice of dessert with a meal. Other than fearing one another, the ‘patients’ – no longer ‘inmates’ – have it cushy: Television sets, exercise equipment, and modern ‘suites’ with amenities most of us would enjoy having. These murderers, serial rapists, and child molesters live together in relative luxury. And, yes, the institution is high security.
