Evaluation of the Impact of a Policy Change on Diversion Program Recidivism and Justice System Costs

Abstract

Following a national trend of “getting tough” on juvenile crime, the Florida legislature eliminated one of the State's primary community service-oriented juvenile diversion programs, the Juvenile Alternative Services Program (JASP). JASP was subsequently replaced with four other diversion programs, two of which (the Walker Plan and an expanded Arbitration program) permitted greater penetration into the juvenile justice system. In previous papers, we examined the effects of this shift in program funding in regard to recidivism and direct cost to the justice system over a six-month post-program follow-up period. The results indicated that: (1) youths placed in the JASP program had significantly lower rates of new arrests and new arrest charges than youths placed in each of the other four diversion programs—suggesting a net-widening effect, and (2) an increase in the direct costs of a number of key justice services, with JASP having a lower direct cost rate, than any of the alternative to JASP programs. The present paper reports the results of analyses extending our study of youths' recidivism and the direct cost to the justice system to 12 months. The results confirm: (1) the lower rates of recidivism (measured in regard to new arrests and new arrest charges) of JASP, compared to the alternative to JASP programs, and (2) the lower direct cost to the justice system for JASP, than the alternative to JASP programs. These longer term findings provide even more convincing evidence that the decision of the Florida legislature to eliminate funds for JASP was misguided. The programs that were used to provide services to JASP eligible youths experienced an increase in youths' post-program contact with the justice system, and an associated, significant increase in direct justice system costs. Community-based diversion programs can achieve better outcomes by providing services to at-risk, non-serious offender youths, at lower cost, than assigning such youths to programs involving penetration into the justice system.