The assessment of continued threat to the community in a mentally ill offender program

Community based outpatient treatment for Mentally Disordered Sex Offenders and those found not guility by reason of insanity are based on controversial empirical grounds. The present research examines how mental health evaluators determine when an offender is or is not a threat to the community for purposes of program continuance. Of 13 variables identified by the staff of the offenders' program or from the literature as important in making this prediction, three were found to be related to the evaluation decision: initial psychiatric diagnosis, the presence of supportive relationships in the community, and improvement in therapy. These findings are discussed in terms of the empirical and philosophical literature on psychiatric detention and treatment.