THE TRUANCY COURT DIVERSION PROGRAM OF THE FAMILY COURT,WARREN CIRCUIT COURT DIVISION III,BOWLING GREEN,KENTUCKY: AN EVALUATION OF IMPACT ON ATTENDANCE AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Educators, parents, and community services partnered with the family court judge to implement the Truancy Court Diversion Program (TCDP). TCDP significantly impacted unexcused absences, unexcused tardies, and academic performance of the elementary and junior high students participating in the program. Elementary participants were more likely to maintain their improved attendance following participation than were junior high participants. Nonetheless, junior high participant grade point averages increased during TCDP and were maintained subsequent to TCDP. TCDP was an effective intervention for improving attendance and academic performance and helping preclude future delinquency.     

Fighting America’s Highest Incarceration Rates with Offender Programming: Process Evaluation Implications from the Louisiana 22nd Judicial District Reentry Court

Reentry programs, when adequately funded and delivered with fidelity, can render recidivism reduction and other positive outcomes such as abstinence and employment stability. This paper reports process evaluation findings for the Louisiana 22nd Judicial District Reentry Court program, a joint SAMHSA/BJA-sponsored multiphase programming intervention for high-risk/high-need offenders featuring job readiness training in the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola and transition services during reentry, including program engagement, job placement, and treatment services continuation in the community under strict judicial supervision. Research procedures entailed 1) observation of court appearances, treatment team meetings, educational activities, and counseling sessions, 2) review of all program participant case files enabling progress tracking, and 3) in-depth and focus group interviews with program stakeholders both at Angola and post-release in community settings. Findings relate the evidence based nature and quality of services delivery to date, as well as fidelity demonstrated across major programmatic domains. Program improvement opportunities, outcome evaluation implications, and performance measures signaling early success center discussion around vanguard elements of the court and evaluation design, respectively.     

AN EMPIRICAL TEST OF SCHOOL-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL AND INDIVIDUAL INTERVENTIONS TO REDUCE THE RISK OF DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR*

This report examines a school-based delinquency prevention program that combined an environmental change approach with direct intervention for high-risk youths to reduce delinquent behavior and increase educational attainment. The program involved school stafl students, and community members in planning and implementing a comprehensive school improvement effort; changed disciplinary procedures; and enhanced the school program with activities aimed at increasing achievement and creating a more positive school climate. It also provided services to marginal students designed to increase their self-concepts and success experiences and to strengthen their bonds to the school. The program brought about a small but measurable reduction in delinquent behavior and misconduct. Students in participating schools were suspended less often, reported fewer punishing experiences in school, and reported less involvement in delinquent and drug-related activities. The environmental interventions apparently decreased delinquency and misconduct by promoting a sense of belonging in and attachment to the school and by improving the general climate and disciplinary practices in the schools. The direct interventions with high-risk students did not reduce delinquent behavior, but did increase commitment to education as indicated by rates of dropout, retention, graduation, and standardized achievement test scores. The evidence supports the conclusion that the program has promise for reducing delinquency and its risk factors for the general population and for improving educational outcomes for high-risk individuals. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

An Innovative Program for Justice-Involved Partner Violence Victims: “No Man is Worth Me Getting Locked Up”

Violence victims who are the primary caregivers for their children sometimes become justice-involved through efforts to protect and defend against intimate partner violence (IPV). Judges often mandate these victims to community-based services, although little is known about these services. Given increasing numbers of such victims, two human service agencies collaborated to create a program for female IPV victims who were their children’s primary caregivers and who were mandated to services for violence against a male partner. Our research team conducted a feasibility study of the program using an exploratory qualitative study design to collect data from program participants (n?=?18) and providers (n?=?7). Analyses determined three key findings: (a) the importance of a welcoming, comfortable environment; (b) the value of certain aspects of the program content; and (c) the importance of support from like others for participant improvement. These findings point to indispensable program elements. Implications for other communities and providers serving justice-involved IPV victims who are also primary caregivers are described.     

A Detailed Cost Evaluation of a Juvenile Drug Court that Follows the Juvenile Drug Court Model (16 Strategies)

Although juvenile drug courts (JDCs) have now been in operation for 17 years, there is still no definitive appraisal as to this model's cost effectiveness and in particular, no detailed cost analysis of a JDC program following the 16 strategies until this one. The cost data presented in this paper build on the process and outcome evaluations performed on the Clackamas County Juvenile Drug Court (CCJDC). The criminal justice costs incurred by participants in drug court are compared with the costs incurred by eligible non‐participants. CCJDC participants had far more positive outcomes than those who did not participate in the program. In the two years after drug court entry, CCJDC participants cost the taxpayers $961 less per participant than similar individuals who did not attend the drug court program.     

An Evaluation of a Delaware Teen Court

The Kent County Teen Court Program (teen court) provides sanctions for juvenile delinquency from a panel of a juvenile's peers rather than from a Family Court Judge. Part of the concept behind teen peer courts is that the sanction from one's peers carries more weight than sanctions from adults. The Delaware Criminal Justice Council (CJC) awarded a grant to Delaware ‐ Teen Courts, Inc. to support the operation of the Kent County Teen Court Program. The teen court program was designed to provide participants with hands‐on education in the judicial process, to create a sanction pro‐ gram that will not create a permanent record for a juvenile, and to foster, a sense of community responsibility in the program participants. The teen court program is an adult model teen court in which all of the judicial actors are juveniles with the exception of the judge. This article reflects the results of an evaluation on the Kent County Teen Court program's first two years of operation (Garrison, 2001).     

The cost benefits of providing community-based correctional services: An evaluation of a statewide parole program in California

This was a cost-benefit study of a statewide program involving multiple community-based services for parolees in California. Program effectiveness was assessed by comparing program costs to incarceration costs avoided due to decreases in recidivism. During the first year following parole release, program participants on average stayed out of prison longer than the comparison population. Participants who completed any of the community-based services stayed out of prison substantially longer. The reductions in re-incarceration yielded a net saving of $21 million in incarceration costs over the study period, after the costs of the program and parole supervision were subtracted, or a 47 percent net return on each program dollar invested. This study did not include potential cost savings to other parties in the justice system. These findings suggest future investments in community-based correctional services might produce substantial financial benefits. A fuller apprehension of the potential benefits would benefit from continuing evaluations, including studies employing a true experimental design.     

Attitude and Behavior Change of Correctional Clientele

Fifty offenders incarcerated in a minimum security provincial institution participated in a variety of group programs with community volunteers. Inmates were randomly assigned to one of four treatment regimes or to a control group condition. The experiment subjects participated in community group discussions with either trained or untrained volunteers, and a concurrent activity, either a self-control program or a recreational group. A test battery was administered in a pre/post fashion and follow-up recidivism was monitored. Two-by-two factorial analyses of the treatment programs revealed a significant interaction between activities. Inmates who had participated in discussion groups with trained volunteers and in a self-control program showed the most improvement on the test battery variables. This treatment effect generalized to inmates'institutional behavior, as measured by staff ratings and disciplinary offences. However, program participation was not related to postrelease success. Nonetheless, correlations between attitude change during the period of incarceration and recidivism were found. Among offenders who increased in their identification with the delinquent subculture, those who also increased in self-esteem experienced less follow-up success than those who decreased in self-esteem. These results are discussed in terms of the complex relation between client characteristics, treatment, and other program services that must be considered in evaluating correctional programs.     

Chapter 2: Pay Now So You Won't Pay Later: The Effectiveness of Prevention Programming in the Fight to Reduce Delinquency

Community-based delinquency prevention programs, designed to work with youth and families before they become involved with the official court process, are relatively rare. Likewise, few studies have been published concerninge valuative research on such programs. This article reviews some background on program concepts, describes the operations of the Oakland County Probate Court Youth Assistance casework services program, and reports the results of a comprehensive program evaluation project. The findings suggest that prevention programming is one effective strategy to aid in reducing the likelihood of more costly court interventions. Recommendations for program development are offered.     

The Ada Sheriffs Youth Foundation: The development of a decentralized youth program

This article describes the Ada Sheriffs Youth Foundation (SYF), a program that provides after-school enrichment activities carried out by individual schools. At the time of evaluation, the Foundation had organized early intervention action (EIA) teams in thirty-one elementary schools. The teams identified and linked troubled youth to local community programs. The program, similar in principle to comprehensive prevention programs, differed in that decision making about participants was decentralized, youth were not grouped, and the participants themselves decided what programs they wanted to participate in. An analysis of youths' at-risk scores before and after program participation showed significant improvement in many dimensions of risk. The article concludes with a discussion of issues related to the integrity of program delivery.     

High School Equivalency Programs: A Method of Rehabilitating Suburban School Drop-Outs

In a five-year period, 825 delinquent school drop-outs received their high school equivalency certificates from the Missouri State Department of Education. 37% of those receiving certificates enrolled in college full or part-time. 55% found jobs, enrolled in training programs, or entered the armed services. Only 3% were re-referred to the Court for additional services. These are the amazing results of a high school equivalency program staffed by volunteers and operated by the St. Louis County Juvenile Court from February, 1969, to 1974.     

Community crime prevention: A review and synthesis of the literature

In the absence of effective formal means for controlling crime in the Western world, community crime prevention has emerged as a major alternative and supplement to the criminal justice system. This article attempts to review what is known currently about the nature, extent, and effectiveness of community-based efforts to prevent residential crime. Included in this assessment are citizen actions to protect themselves, their property, and their neighborhood, as well as efforts to prevent crime through changes in the physical environmental and through innovations in community policing. The historical, theoretical, and empirical rationale for community crime prevention strategies are discussed, but primary attention is given to the results of evaluation research in the field. Although community-based efforts are supported widely by theory, studies of natural covariation, and by numerous poorly designed evaluations, there is a paucity of strong demonstrations and evaluations showing that such interventions can alter the behavior and local environments of persons who are not already predisposed to crime prevention. Substantially more research is needed to determine the collective benefits of community crime prevention strategies, but a number of promising approaches currently are being developed.     

Worthy of Justice: A Veterans Treatment Court in Practice

This article examines the purpose and practice of a Veterans Treatment Court (VTC), a new type of problem-solving court designed to connect qualifying former service members in the criminal justice system with social services. While existing studies of VTCs explain these courts by focusing on veterans' distinct needs or deservingness based on their military service, this article argues that these courts are being created because of societal beliefs about veteran worth. By revealing how court staff, participants, and volunteers in one VTC invoke beliefs about veteran worth, the findings of this study show that VTCs link worth to veteran identity, leaving participants suspended in conflicting notions of state and individual responsibility for criminal behavior.     

Deviancy training: understanding how preventive interventions harm

Joan McCord’s follow-up study of the Cambridge–Somerville Youth Project showed that even well-intentioned, well-implemented prevention programs sometimes have harmful effects on participants. She reported that peer reinforcement of delinquent behaviors or bragging about delinquent behaviors that occurred during summer camp experiences provided as part of the project might explain the negative outcomes observed for treatment boys. We explored this “deviancy training” mechanism in the context of an evaluation of an after-school program. The study found that peer deviancy training does occur in the context of after-school programs, that it is more likely to occur during less structured activities, and that more violent behavior also occurs during these less structured times. Also, the amount of adult supervision that is afforded in after-school programs did not counteract the reinforcing effect of peers. Finally, we showed that while teaching a prevention curriculum that was part of the after-school program, the most effective group leaders provided positive reinforcement for students’ pro-deviancy expressions. A scale assessing beliefs that illegal, violent, and risky behaviors are common and acceptable in the peer group favored the control students in the programs in which group leaders were observed providing this positive reinforcement. Implications for prevention programming are discussed.     

Parenting in Dependency Drug Court

The Dependency Drug Court (DDC) in Miami, Florida, addresses the needs of families affected by substance abuse through a comprehensive and therapeutic approach. The DDC works with community agencies to provide services that effectively treat the family as a unit. This article discusses the process of adapting a parenting program to meet the needs of families in the DDC.     

The goals of community-based corrections: An analysis of state legal codes

The increased reliance on community-based correctional programs has been influenced by rising offender populations and the need for states to lessen prison crowding. The ability of community-based corrections to provide rehabilitation, punishment, reintegration, and counseling services has been an issue among both researchers and administrators. Some researchers have asserted that community-based correctional programs have multiple or competing functions. This study examines 1992 legal codes for all fifty states to determine the legally prescribed goals as mandated by state legislatures. The findings suggest that rehabilitation is the primary legislatively mandated goal, and that most states have multiple purposes for handling offenders in the community. Suggestions for future research in the area of community-based corrections goals are made.     

Assessing the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency: An Evaluation of a Court‐Based Delinquency Prevention Program

In 2002, the State of Ohio mandated juvenile courts to provide prevention for at‐risk youth. This study examined official court records to evaluate the effectiveness of a prevention program administered by the Greene County Juvenile Court. A sample of 362 youth referred to the program for the years 2002 to 2009 by concerned caretakers, teachers, and police was analyzed. Consistent with intake goals, 81.7% of clients were referred for at‐risk but not actually delinquent behaviors. Completion of the prevention program did not predict future court referrals, but neither did seriousness of referral behavior. Children with two biological parents were significantly more likely to complete the program, whereas referrals to Strengthening Families Program and substance abuse screening significantly predicted program noncompletion. Implications for policy and research are discussed.

Key Points for the Family Court Community:
• This article highlights efforts by county juvenile court to implement a secondary prevention program for at‐risk but not officially court‐referred youth.
• Delinquency prevention research depends on good juvenile court data and adequate comparison groups.
• Evidence‐based predelinquent interventions with external process and outcome evaluations should be the standard.

     

Offender experiences and opinions of mixed-gender group work in the community: a qualitative study

The National Probation Service in England and Wales currently delivers community-based accredited offending behavior programs in mixed-gender groups. There is at present a lack of research on the potential impact of mixed-gender group work on female offenders, who are often the minority within the group. This study aimed to improve our understanding of the area using qualitative methods. Sixteen offenders who had participated in a mixed-gender offending behavior program were interviewed as part of this study. Themes from the interviews were analyzed using Grounded Theory techniques. The findings illustrated an overall preference among all participants for mixed-gender rather than single-gender group work. The specific advantages of mixed-gender group work included increased learning about the opposite sex and a more relaxed atmosphere within the group. Although this study reflects positive attitudes to mixed-gender group work, the findings need to be tested further using empirical methodology.     

The impact of two Los Angeles County Teen Courts on youth recidivism: comparing two informal probation programs

Objective

This study sought to examine the impact of two Teen Courts operating in Los Angeles County, a juvenile justice system diversion program in which youths are judged by their peers and given restorative sentences to complete during a period of supervision.

Methods

A quasi-experimental design was used to compare youths who participated in Teen Courts (n = 112) to youths who participated in another diversion program administered by the Probation Department (the 654 Contract program) (n = 194). Administrative data were abstracted from the probation records for all youths who participated in these programs between January 1, 2012 and June 20, 2014. Logistic and survival models were used to examine differences in recidivism, measured as whether the minor had any subsequent arrest or arrests for which the charge was filed.

Results

Comparison group participants had higher rates of recidivism than Teen Court participants, after controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and risk level. While the magnitude of the program effects were fairly consistent across model specifications (odd ratios comparing Teen Court [referent] to school-based 654 Contract ranging from 1.95 to 3.07, hazard ratios ranging from 1.62 to 2.27), differences were not statistically significant in all scenarios.

Conclusions

While this study provides modest support for the positive impact of Teen Court, additional research is needed in order to better understand how juvenile diversion programs can improve youth outcomes.