By Catherine Saillant, Times Staff Writer
January 20, 2007 Even if a short film about Tommy Lennon's life is nominated for an Academy Award on Tuesday, its 35-year-old subject won't be attending the awards show next month. Mentally ill and addicted to drugs, Lennon is in a Santa Barbara jail waiting to learn if his next stop is a courtroom or a prison psychiatric ward. Lennon has cycled in and out of jails for a decade, and his most recent arrest was on a petty theft charge. As detailed in "A Revolving Door," a short documentary about him, when he's not incarcerated, he is shuffled from low-rent motels to the streets to mental institutions and back again. "It's a road to hell," Debbie Lennon said of watching helplessly as inner demons consumed her son's life starting at age 17. "It's not easy for the person afflicted with it, and it's not easy for the people who love him."
Filmmakers Marilyn and Chuck Braverman of Santa Monica spent three years chronicling Lennon's chaotic life to illustrate how society deals with the mentally ill. Marilyn Braverman knew the Lennons and has a son who is the same age as Tommy, Chuck Braverman said. Lennon suffers from manic depression, a severe mental disorder marked by cycles of frantic activity and grinding depression. He uses drugs, usually amphetamines, because, he says, they make him "feel great."
The Ventura man has been arrested numerous times, usually for being under the influence or violating probation, his mother said. While in prison, he often refuses to take his medication, resulting in ever more erratic behavior, she said. Debbie Lennon said she has become a "squeaky wheel," badgering police, attorneys and jail officials in an effort to help her son get the medicines he needs. "I'm resourceful," she said. "But what about the thousands of others who are trying to do the same thing?"
Mental illness in California's jail population is widespread, according to Stephen Mayberg, director of the state Department of Mental Health. He estimates that up to 30% of those incarcerated are dealing with some type of mental health issue. California has attempted to address the problem by making community-based mental health services available to the poor in each county, Mayberg said.
In the past, there has not been enough money to meet the need, he said. Now the state is distributing an additional $1.5 billion to expand mental health services, Mayberg said. The money comes from voter-approved Proposition 63, which imposed a 1% tax on personal incomes of more than $1 million. The 2004 law calls for an expansion in services for mentally ill children, adults and seniors. Mayberg said about a third of the money will be used specifically to help people such as Lennon.
One program, tested in Los Angeles County, attempts to keep mentally ill offenders out of jail by getting them counseling, medications and hospital care at the first sign that they are spiraling out of control, he said. The pilot program reduced jail days by 70%, he said. "What we know is treatment does work," Mayberg said. "But it's got to be coordinated and available around the clock, not just from 9 to 5."
The 39-minute documentary uses a low-key cinema verite style to depict Lennon's reality. In one showdown, his parents and a brother struggle to persuade Lennon to enter a Ventura psychiatric facility. He resists so violently that the family eventually calls police to help, and he is taken away in handcuffs. The film also shows good days, when Lennon has taken his medications faithfuly and stayed away from amphetamines.
Chuck Braverman said he hopes the movie will help the public see how difficult it is to deal with chronic mental illness. It is being offered mainly as an educational film, although it had a short theatrical release so it could qualify for an Academy nomination, he said. It is one of eight short documentaries being considered for a nomination, he said. Making the film caused Braverman to question the wisdom of locking up mentally ill people for petty crimes instead of sending them for treatment.
Lennon's arrests over the years have typically been for being under the influence or possessing drugs, he said. "I hope this film wakes some people up," he sad. "If this was your son or daughter, would you want them to be treated like this? We can do better than this." At a court hearing earlier this month, a Santa Barbara judge agreed to a psychiatric evaluation of Lennon to determine if he should stand trial or be sent to Patton State Hospital for treatment until he is competent. Santa Barbara prosecutor Josh Webb said Lennon is well known around the courts, having been arrested in the past. Although he is sympathetic with Lennon's family, he said he has little choice but to prosecute when a law has been violated. "Undoubtedly, you try to treat them with medication," he said. "It's a case of 'you're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't."
