Based on two open-ended interviews with people suffering from a mental illness and who have been incarcerated, this article explores their perspectives on both health and justice systems. In their view, there is a divide between the needs of people with mental health problems and the care that is offered. The difficult juncture between needs and services seems to have numerous explanations (prejudice, lack of training of personnel, difficult administrative process, lack of communication between "inside" and "outside"); and the elements that could facilitate this juncture appear to be scarce (mutual help among inmates, community based mental help organizations).