South Tacoma Man Confined to Jail
After months of family-led care, H. A. McKenney has been moved to the county jail due to worsening mental health.
H. A. McKenney of South Tacoma is being held at the county jail pending an examination as to his sanity. A warrant for his arrest was issued last November, but since that time his people have cared for him in the hope that he would recover. He became worse and was placed in confinement as a last resort.
“He became worse and was placed in confinement as a last resort.”
This item illustrates the limited and often punitive avenues available to families in the past for handling mental health crises. The language 'examination as to his sanity' marks the era's clinical and legal approach to what we now treat through different social and medical frameworks.
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