text: do prisons have wards for the criminally insane also within the same facility? are there seperate wings devoted to the criminally insane, or are asylums completely different buildings altogether? usually they are separate, but there are some states that house those inmates with the rest. that decision depends on the individual inmate. just because someone was criminally insane at the time they committed the act does not mean they are still insane. infact, if you are found criminally insane you are, essentially, found "not guilty by reason of insanity". the court does not have to take any further action and can release the individual back to society. after all, they are "not guilty". now, if you have a convicted person who is later deemed "insane" they can be housed with the "general public" in the jail, or they can be moved to a secured facility such as an asylum.