Court Program Research Articles

Promoting Access to Justice through the Broadcasting of Legal Proceedings

This article considers a lack of legal literacy as a barrier to access to justice. The article then considers the potential effectiveness of introducing media-based teaching tools to South African society in an attempt to increase the rights awareness of South Africans. In so doing, the article proposes ways in which this improved rights awareness can assist South Africans to engage with the law, their rights, and the judicial system as a whole in a manner which promotes improved access to justice. It considers television-based teaching tools already implemented in the country as well as possible future interventions. It draws on past television-based education initiatives in South Africa in an effort to consider how South Africans engage with television-based teaching tools. It further draws on the open justice principle to argue for the increased broadcasting of legal proceedings. The article then considers television in three other jurisdictions and undertakes an assessment of the effect of television on our cognitive and subliminal engagement with the law. The discussion on other jurisdictions includes how fictional legal programming, syndicated court programmes as well as other forms of "Court TV" have contributed both positively and negatively to the legal consciousness of those societies.

The interplay between women, opioid use disorder, medication-assisted treatment (MAT), and drug court: A qualitative study

ABSTRACT This qualitative study explores three important and understudied areas of drug court research (e.g., women, opioid use disorder, and medication-assisted treatment [MAT]). The research question for this study is: What are women’s thoughts, opinions, and experiences in drug court, in regard to the quality of treatment they received for their opioid use disorders and to the use of MAT in drug court programming to treat opioid use disorders? To answer the research question, data from female drug court participants (n = 14) were collected through a focus group methodology. Four themes emerged from the analysis: (1) Women had more positive views toward the use of extended-release injectable naltrexone, as compared to methadone and buprenorphine; (2) Women reported fears about using MAT to treat their opioid use disorders because they felt it could negatively impact their housing, where they were able to receive substance use disorder and mental health treatment, and their ability to maintain custody of their children; (3) Women reported histories of oppression, mainly trauma, and shared that, in some situations, they were not comfortable disclosing they were using or considering using MAT because of further oppressions they may experience; and (4) Women reported that the use of a non-adversarial approach by the judge, consistent with key component two of the drug court model, helped minimize their concerns related to the use of MAT and gave them a safe place during status hearings to discuss their opioid use disorder treatment and recovery. Implications for drug court practice and criminal justice reform are discussed, such as promoting access to housing and treatment for women who use MAT to treat their opioid use disorders and creating safe, anti-oppressive environments to promote recovery for female participants.

The definition of ‘violent conduct’ for Drug Court program access

Neither ‘violent conduct’ nor ‘charged’ are defined in the founding New South Wales (NSW) drug court legislation in relation to the definition of an ‘offence involving violent conduct’ as defined in s 5(2)(b) of the Drug Court Act 1998. Accordingly, the court has relied upon the case law interpretation which has triggered much debate in NSW. The fundamental point of debate is whether the concept relates to the ‘elements’ of the offence or the alleged physical ‘conduct’ of the referral to the Drug Court program. This article aims to identify and outline the lack of clarity that has arisen from this legislation. It is argued that the eligibility exclusion outlined in s 5(2)(b) should be reviewed for possible statutory amendment to target the most appropriate offenders and maintain the success of the Drug Court.

What Matters More in Explaining Drug Court Graduation and Rearrest: Program Features, Individual Characteristics, or Some Combination.

This study examines the program- and individual-level factors that impact the success of drug court clients in terms of: (1) graduation; and (2) not being arrested while participating in the court program. The data consist of 848 individuals in nine drug courts. This paper discusses how different individual- and program-level factors impact the success of drug court participants. The findings suggest that individual- and program-level factors are both important in predicting program graduation and arrest during drug court participation, while controlling for participant demographics. Clients' education, drug/alcohol usage, program staffing, and clinical standards impact program graduation while criminal history, drug/alcohol usage, number of program hours offered, program staffing, and use of rewards and sanctions predict in-program arrest. Models combining both program- and individual-level factors performed better than either alone, leading to recommendations that agencies should emphasize improving program quality while targeting clients' needs to achieve greater success.

Incorporating MISSION-CJ for drug court participants with co-occurring substance use and mental health disorders

This paper reports on the implementation of evidence-based MISSION-CJ case management across multiple drug courts in Erie and Niagara County, NY. Participant outcomes, including substance use, housing, employment, mental health symptoms, and criminal justice involvement were assessed at intake and 6-months for 209 individuals. Overall, significant improvements were observed for nights in jail, committing any crimes, past 30-day alcohol and drug use, anxiety symptoms, housing, and employment. Results suggest that MISSION-CJ can successfully be implemented across multiple court settings, and may be a valuable add-on to drug court programs to address unmet mental health needs of participants.

Age and Gender Differences in Injuries and Risk Factors in Elite Junior and Professional Tennis Players.

Elite tennis athletes experience injuries throughout the entire body. Impairments in trunk stability, lower limb flexibility, and hip range of motion (ROM) are modifiable risk factors that can impact injuries and performance. Information on nonmodifiable risk factors such as age and gender is limited. The purpose of this investigation was to provide information on risk factors to direct clinical decision-making and injury prevention and rehab programming in this population. Prevalence and location of injuries will differ by age group and gender. Trunk stability, lower limb flexibility, and hip ROM will differ by age group and gender. Cross-sectional study. Level 3. A de-identified database (n = 237; females = 126) from the United States Tennis Association High Performance Profile (HPP) 2014-2015 was used for the analysis. Subjects were elite junior and professional tennis players (mean age 14.6 [range, 9-27] years). The HPP is a tennis-specific assessment and questionnaire that includes retrospective information on injury history. Subjects were categorized by injury, gender, and age. Injury locations were classified by region. Trunk stability measures included drop vertical jump (DVJ), single-leg squat, and prone and side planks. Lower limb measures included hamstring, quadriceps and hip flexor flexibility, and hip rotation ROM. A total of 46% of athletes reported an injury. Significant differences were found for injury prevalence and location by age group. Adolescent athletes (age 13-17 years) had more trunk injuries, while adult athletes (age ≥18 years) had more lower limb injuries. Adolescent athletes performed worse on DVJ, dominant side plank, and hamstring flexibility compared with young (age ≤12 years) and adult athletes. Significant gender differences in hip ROM included internal rotation on both the dominant and nondominant sides. Impairments in trunk stability, lower limb flexibility, and hip rotation ROM may affect both health and performance outcomes in this population. Elite tennis athletes may benefit from additional off court programming to address trunk and lower limb impairments. Adolescent elite tennis athletes may be at higher risk of trunk injuries. Age, gender, injury history, and impairments should be considered with all assessments and programming.

Predicting drug court graduation: Examining the role of individual and programmatic characteristics

IntroductionAlthough existing research suggests drug courts reduce recidivism and substance use, a large portion of drug court participants do not graduate. According to a conceptual framework, severity of need and program intensity may help to explain variation in drug court effectiveness. Understanding variation in drug court graduation can help to identify high risk participants and effective programmatic elements. MethodsOur sample included 247 drug court participants from an adult felony-level drug court located in a large metropolitan area of the southeastern United States that either graduated (n = 113) or were terminated (n = 134) from the program. We used participant and program characteristics from drug court program records to predict drug court graduation. ResultsIn bivariate analyses, several participant and program characteristics were significantly associated with drug court graduation. In the final multivariate model, only one participant-level characteristic was significantly related to graduation: emotional/personal risk and needs (aOR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.33, 0.93). Alternatively, three program characteristics remained statistically significant predictors of drug court graduation in the final multivariate model. Receiving more individual counseling sessions was positively associated with drug court graduation (aOR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.14, 1.41), while jail and monetary fine sanctions were negatively associated with drug court graduation (aOR jail: 0.45, 95% CI: 0.30, 0.68; aOR fine: 0.28, 95% CI: 0.10, 0.78). ConclusionsOur findings suggest that drug court programs may benefit by tailoring services for individuals with high emotional/personal risk and participants who receive certain types of sanctions. More rigorous research should explore the causal relationship between individual counseling and drug court graduation to determine if wide-scale programmatic changes are warranted.

Criminal problem-solving and civil dependency court policies regarding medications for opioid use disorder

Background: Criminal problem-solving courts and civil dependency courts often have participants with substance use disorder (SUD), including opioid use disorder (OUD). These courts refer participants to treatment and set treatment-related requirements for court participants to avoid incarceration or to regain custody of children. Medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) are the most effective treatment for OUD but are underutilized by court system participants. Little is known about variation in court policies for different MOUDs. Also, more information is needed about types of policies for each MOUD, including whether participants may begin MOUD, continue previously begun MOUD, or complete the court program with MOUD. Methods: An online survey was distributed to criminal problem-solving and civil dependency judges in Florida in 2019 and 2020, yielding data from 58 judges (a 24% response rate). We used nonparametric statistics to test hypotheses with ordinal data. A Friedman's test for related samples or Cochran's Q was used to make within-group comparisons between policies and MOUDs. Results: We found considerable policy variation, with more permissive policies for naltrexone than buprenorphine or methadone, and more permissive policies for continuing MOUD than for initiating MOUD or completing a court program with MOUD. For each medication, less than one quarter of judges indicated their court always permits MOUD, with most indicating that MOUD is permitted sometimes or usually. Conclusion: Because respondents rarely chose “never” or “always” for any MOUD policy, most courts appear to be making MOUD decisions on a case-by-case basis. A clearer understanding of this decision-making process is needed. Some court participants may be required to discontinue MOUD before completing a court program, even if they were permitted to start or continue MOUD treatment. Discontinuation of MOUD without medical justification is contrary to the standard of care for individuals with OUD and increases their risk of overdose.

Family Drug Court grants available

In a re‐release of a December 2020 grant announcement, which includes some changes, the Department of Justice last week called for applications for funding under the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Family Drug Court Program. The program supports states and communities in the development and coordination of substance use intervention programs. There is now a two‐step process to apply. The Grants.gov deadline is June 22, which must be met in order to submit an application. This does not commit one to submitting an application. The JustGrants deadline is July 6. For more information, go to https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/funding/fy2021/O‐OJJDP‐2021‐92009.

Employing the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model and predicting successful completion in an alternative drug court program: Preliminary findings from the Orleans Parish Drug Court

Drug courts have been in operation for decades to provide treatment alternatives to individuals whose substance use and related behaviors have brought them into contact with the criminal justice system. As research on drug courts have evolved, it has been demonstrated that different types of offenders have different mental health and substance use treatment needs. One way of approaching treatment in court-mandated substance use treatment is by the application of the risk-need-responsivity (RNR) model (Andrews, Zinger et al., 1990). The Orleans Parish Drug Court expanded assessment and treatment services to determine whether the implementation of alternative substance use programming within a traditional drug court model improved outcomes. The goals of the current study were to describe the process of implementing risk and need principles, provide a description of client characteristics, examine the factors related to successful completion of drug court, and investigate completion rates across risk and need groups. Results demonstrated that risk and need groups differed on several demographic variables, levels of substance use, mental health concerns, and legal issues, suggesting assessment and triage procedures were successful. Comparisons between individuals who successfully completed drug court and those who were terminated prematurely also showed significant differences. Specifically, baseline age, education, substance use problems and frequency, and days in jail/prison were unique predictors of successful drug court completion. Finally, as predicted, individuals in the group with the lowest risk and need had the highest graduation rate, despite receiving less intensive services. Overall, creation of specialized treatment tracks within a traditional drug court program appears to be an effective strategy to target the wide range of offenders typical of drug court participants.

Noble Intent Is Not Enough To Run Veterans Court Mentoring Programs: A Qualitative Study of Mentors’ Role Orientation and Responsibilities

Mentoring is a key component of veterans treatment courts, a diversionary problem-solving court for justice-involved military veterans. Mentoring programs are unique to veterans’ courts; no other problem-solving courts systematically include them as critical components of their court programming. Despite their prominence in veterans courts, little is known about mentor program operations and court expectations for mentors’ roles and responsibilities. This study examines mentors’ roles and responsibilities as perceived by mentees, mentors, and veterans treatment court staff. Using in-depth interview data from respondents from each of these groups, supplemented by observational data from court hearings and pre-court meetings, we identify three types of mentoring styles: enforcers, sponsor/advocates, and friend. We find a lack of clarity in mentors’ roles and responsibilities, which negatively impacted mentor-mentee relationships and mentors’ relationships with the court. The three mentoring styles identified in this study offer veterans treatment courts a framework to shape and refine the mentor role and guide future efforts to provide standardized training for mentors.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of judicial supervision on recidivism and well-being factors of criminal offenders

This systematic review and meta-analysis investigated whether problem-solving court interventions that employed judicial supervision were more effective in reducing recidivism and improving well-being outcomes for offenders compared with conventional justice processes. More than 11,000 records were collected via a three-phase search strategy that identified 56 independent investigations that included 11,146 treatment and 12,091 comparison subjects. A total of 68 outcomes were assessed for risk of bias, with the majority (59.67%) rated ‘critical’ overall. A subset of recidivism outcomes (k = 22) that were included in a synthesis of relative incident rate ratios revealed a significant reduction in rearrests from pre-treatment to post-treatment among problem-solving court interventions as compared with treatment-as-usual processes. However, there was a high degree of unexplained heterogeneity observed among studies. An analysis of moderators revealed that mental health courts possessed larger treatment effects than both drug courts and driving while intoxicated courts, court programs that reported individualized treatment had greater effects than those that did not, and stronger treatment effects were found among programs that required frequent judicial supervision in the initial phases of treatment. More rigorous investigations, with detailed descriptions of treatment programs, are needed to better explain the sources of variance between and within court formats.

The Impact of Traumatic Stress, Social Support, and Substance Problems on Graduation Among Female Offenders in a Prescription Drug Court Program.

Trauma exposure and comorbid substance use are highly prevalent among female drug court participants. Despite the pervasiveness of the issue, few studies have investigated the impact of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and nonmedical prescription drug use among this specific population. The present study examined the impact of posttraumatic stress, social support, and nonmedical prescription drug use on graduation outcomes among female participants in a specialized drug court program (N = 210). Participants either received motivational enhancement therapy/cognitive behavioral therapy (MET-CBT; N = 210) or both MET-CBT and Seeking Safety through intensive outpatient treatment (n = 109). The findings indicated that graduation was negatively correlated with posttraumatic stress, r = -.19, p = .007, d = 0.40; past 90-day nonmedical prescription painkiller, opiate, and analgesic use, r = -.19, p = .001, d = 0.44; tangible social support, r = -.24, p = < .001, d = 0.51; and past-month substance use problems, r = -.25, p < .001, d = .50. In addition, past-month substance use problems, OR = 0.84, 95% CI [0.72, 0.97]; PTSS, OR = 0.90, 95 % CI [0.82, 0.99]; and tangible social support, OR = 0.94, 95% CI [0.89, 0.98], were significant negative predictors of graduation. These results speak to the importance of facilitating the development of specialized evidence-based drug court interventions that target and improve comorbid substance use and trauma outcomes among female drug court participants to reduce recidivism and set a precedent for future research to replicate and expand upon these findings.

33392 Investigating the relationship between placement instability, mental health, behavioral and justice-related outcomes among sex-trafficked youth

ABSTRACT IMPACT: This public health work contributes to the development and implementation of best practices for working with sex trafficked youth who experience placement instability and justice involvement. OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Youth removed from their home into foster care or a group home (i.e., placement instability) are vulnerable to sex trafficking. This study examines whether placement instability predicts mental health, behavioral and justice-related outcomes among sex-trafficked girls. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Placement instability occurs when children are temporarily or permanently removed from their home and placed in foster care or a group home. Domestic minor sex trafficking is exploitation and abuse of children for commercial sexual purposes in exchange for money or other goods/services. We hypothesize that sex trafficked girls who experience placement instability will report more mental health challenges, substance use, abuse history and justice involvement than those without placement instability. Data came from participant files in a specialty court program from 2012-2014 (N=184). Multiple sources contribute to the information contained court files; all data extracted by the research team come solely from the court files. Descriptive, bivariate, and logistic regression analyses were performed. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: All participants were (cis)female, 74% were African American, 96% US citizens, with average age of 16 years. Three-quarters of participants had a documented mental health challenge, such as depression and 88% reported substance use. Eighty-one percent of participants had been in a placement, with a group average of 4.5 placements. Girls with placement instability reported more mental health challenges (p&lt;.001), substance use (p&lt;.001), abuse (p&lt;.001), running away (p&lt;.001) and bench warrants (p&lt;.001) than girls without placement instability. Logistic regression estimated housing instability was positively associated with mental health challenge, substance use, running away, number of bench warrants, and number of citations. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE OF FINDINGS: Among girls who have been trafficked, placement instability places them at greater risk for personal and behavioral challenges, including increased justice involvement. Comprehensive trauma-informed services should be provided to the family to help mitigate issues in the home.

Family‐Centered Practice in Adult Treatment Courts: What Can We Learn from the Family Treatment Court Best Practice Standards?

AbstractEstimates suggest that upwards of 50% of participants in adult treatment courts (ATC) are parents. Previous studies point to negative impacts of unmet parenting needs on substance use treatment and criminal justice outcomes, and that family‐centered practices such as parenting classes substantially reduce recidivism among ATC participants. Judges and team members interested in adopting family‐centered practices in their ATC program may be unsure where to begin. One recent source of information regarding evidence‐based, family‐centered practices in treatment court settings is the Family Treatment Court (FTC) Best Practice Standards. The FTC Standards suggest adopting a family‐centered mission, expanding partnerships with child‐ and family‐serving agencies, discussing parenting and family roles during hearings, implementing family‐centered case management, and considering the effect of therapeutic responses on children and families. Building on the ATC Standards, the flexibility inherent in voluntary court programs, and existing community partnerships creates a pathway toward family‐centered practice in criminal settings.

Drug Court Recidivism in the Rural Midwest: A 3-Year Post-Separation Analysis

Substance abuse continues to be a pressing social problem in the United States today. As the country battles an opioid epidemic, many jurisdictions have adopted the problem-solving court model in response. These specialized courts, known as drug courts, offer a rehabilitative approach to offender management. Drug courts balance substance abuse rehabilitation with community-based supervision and operate with the philosophy that addressing the addiction will result in a decrease in criminal offending. The current study examines the recidivism rates for 50 participants who have been separated (i.e., completed or terminated) from one rural drug court program in the Midwest for at least 3 years. Findings indicate that successful completion of drug court is associated with decreases in misdemeanor offending, and more importantly, decreases in felony offending. While preliminary, the findings of this research provide support for the drug court model in the rural Midwest. Further research in this area is highly recommended.

A BETTER WAY

A BETTER WAY

Role of Social Support and Ego Network Characteristics on Quality of Life

Mental health courts offer alternatives to incarceration for persons with severe mental illness who are involved in the criminal justice system. These courts have the dual function of ensuring treatment for persons involved in the court as well as ensuring the safety of the public. Persons with severe mental illness who are involved in mental health courts rely on others for support, such as family members. Others may buttress the participant from engaging in criminal activities and provide for needs of the participant. The supportiveness as well as the composition of one’s network members may play a role in the success of mental health court participants, such as successfully completing the mental health court program and avoiding incarceration. Little research has explored how social support impacts mental health court participants. We explored how the composition and sense of support of network members were associated with mental health court participants’ quality of life. We regressed quality of life on social support and network characteristics of 80 participants in two mental health courts. Findings suggest that perceived support is positively associated with quality of life, and the proportion of family in one’s network was negatively related to quality of life. Findings suggest that persons involved in mental health courts need supportive others in their social networks in addition to family. More research is needed to explore the reasons having a higher proportion of family members in one’s network is associated with lower quality of life. Practitioners need to pay attention to and leverage mental health court participants’ social networks to help improve their quality of life.

A longitudinal study of justice characteristics among girls participating in a sex trafficking court program

BackgroundSex trafficking is a public health and social justice issue that has traditionally been addressed with criminal justice solutions. Because many sex trafficking survivors are incarcerated for crimes related to their exploitation, specialty, human trafficking courts were developed to offer resources and assistance to labor and sex trafficking survivors. This study assessed justice-involved youth participating in a specialty, anti-trafficking court program. The purpose of this study was to investigate justice-related outcomes of participants in a specialty court program. We examined: (1) the relationship between age at first citation and justice characteristics (number of bench warrants, number of citations, number placements, and number of times ran away); and (2) the number of months between first citation and enrollment into the program with the aforementioned justice characteristics. We used negative binomial models to estimate the relationships between age at first citation, number of months between first citation and program enrollment, with the four justice characteristics (n = 181).ResultsAdjusted models showed that younger age at first citation was associated with significantly more bench warrants and citations while in the program. Likewise, fewer months between first citation and program entry was related to more bench warrants and citations.ConclusionsThere is a need to evaluate the appropriateness of specialty, trafficking court programs in reducing continued justice involvement and these programs ability to meet the evolving needs of sex trafficking survivors over time. We recommend universal screening for trafficking indicators for all systems-involved youth and relocating trafficking specialty courts out of juvenile courts to dependency courts.

Strategies for Enhancing Programming in Local Juvenile Courts: Logic Models and Quality Assurance Procedures

The authors provide a case-study related to a recent project using program logic models as a primary component in the implementation of a formal quality assurance process in a local juvenile court. Program logic models illustrate the evolution of court personnel’s thoughts about how best to conceptualize programming. Juvenile court officials are developing and implementing formal “quality assurance” procedures to allow for ongoing planning and program development. The authors argue that quality assurance procedures hold great promise for assuring that juvenile court programming is efficient and effective and serves the needs of local communities.