October 07, 2007

'The place of mortal danger' - Craig Tanner saw arson as his only option
He believed jail would be better than being committed. Last year, Craig Tanner went to jail for setting fire to his parents' Idaho Falls home. It was the low point of a long decline that began...

Many with mental illnesses don't believe they're sick
If there is one single obstacle to treating people with mental illness, it's that a large number of them don't believe they're sick at all. It's not everyday defensiveness that makes them this way,...

October 08, 2007

'It hit me like a broom ...'
Craig Tanner showed the first signs of schizophrenia as a 19-year-old Although the college student's mother was a doctor, she wasn't able to acknowledge the symptoms. Last year, Craig Tanner...

Tanners active in support group
The couple helped start an Upper Valley chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Early on, John and Martha Tanner saw where the system was failing them and their son Craig, who has...

Idaho flunking in its care for the mentally ill
The state was one of eight to receive a failing grade from an advocacy group. When it came to rating states' efforts to help people with mental illness, Idaho was one of eight states to receive an F...

October 09, 2007

'It's the best we can hope for'
Craig Tanner is stable for now, and his parents hope things will stay that way After torching his parents' home, Craig was sent to Mental Health Court instead of prison. But this is his last chance....

Three diagnoses, three survivors
One lives with his parents, and two are now advocates in the mental-health field. People survive schizophrenia, but recovery is a hard and often lonely road. Studies indicate that about a third of...

Recognizing a need
The Mental Health Court program helps clients sort out the problems that landed them in trouble with the law. When people with mental illness break the law, they make headlines. In Idaho Falls and...