Nonviolent Offenses Research Articles

Impact of Mental Health Court Diversion on Reoffending: A Direct Comparison of Diverted and Undiverted Groups

Mental health court diversionary programs are a key strategy to address over-representation of individuals with a mental illness in the criminal justice system. The study examined 2,476 individuals identified as eligible for mental health court diversion by the Statewide Community and Court Liaison Service (SCCLS) in New South Wales (NSW), Australia and compared reoffending of those granted and not granted court diversion. Individuals not diverted had 43% higher reoffending rate than those granted diversion. Predictors of non-diversion and reoffending included younger age, being male, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander background, primary personality and/or substance use diagnosis and non-violent offence charges.

Delusions and Delinquencies: A Comparison of Violent and Non-Violent Offenders With Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders.

The relationship between schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) and violent offending has long been the subject of research. The present study attempts to identify the content of delusions, an understudied factor in this regard, that differentiates between violent and non-violent offenses. Limitations, clinical relevance, and future directions are discussed. Employing a retrospective study design, machine learning algorithms and a comprehensive set of variables were applied to a sample of 366 offenders with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder in a Swiss forensic psychiatry department. Taking into account the different contents and affects associated with delusions, eight variables were identified as having an impact on discriminating between violent and non-violent offenses with an AUC of 0.68, a sensitivity of 30.8%, and a specificity of 91.9%, suggesting that the variables found are useful for discriminating between violent and non-violent offenses. Delusions of grandiosity, delusional police and/or army pursuit, delusional perceived physical and/or mental injury, and delusions of control or passivity were more predictive of non-violent offenses, while delusions with aggressive content or delusions associated with the emotions of anger, distress, or agitation were more frequently associated with violent offenses. Our findings extend and confirm current research on the content of delusions in patients with SSD. In particular, we found that the symptoms of threat/control override (TCO) do not directly lead to violent behavior but are mediated by other variables such as anger. Notably, delusions traditionally seen as symptoms of TCO, appear to have a protective value against violent behavior. These findings will hopefully help to reduce the stigma commonly and erroneously associated with mental illness, while supporting the development of effective therapeutic approaches.

Association between Callous-Unemotional Traits, Empathy, and Moral Disengagement Mechanisms in Juvenile Offenders

There are few studies that explore the association between cognitive and affective factors according to gender and types of crime in juvenile offenders. This study analyzed the association between callous-unemotional traits, empathy, and moral disengagement mechanisms according to gender differences and criminal typology in 149 adolescents (M = 17.72 years, SD = 1.34) prosecuted by the Criminal Responsibility System (SRPA) and placed in custodial measures. The 81.2% were males and 18.8% were females. This was a quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, comparative-correlational study. The Scale of Moral Disengagement Mechanisms, the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index were used. It was found that males presented higher scores in the mechanisms of moral disengagement and uncaring. Females presented higher scores in total empathy and empathic concern. Adolescents with felonies had higher scores on attribution of blame. Moral disengagement mechanisms correlated positively with callous-unemotional traits and personal distress. Empathic concern and perspective taking correlated negatively with moral disengagement. In adolescents with history of felonies, moral disengagement presented stronger associations with callous-unemotional traits. In non-violent offenses, the strongest associations were with uncaring, and in trespassing they were with personal distress. Results are discussed according to empirical evidence and implications for intervention.

Offenders and non-offenders with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: the crime-preventive potential of sufficient embedment in the mental healthcare and support system.

Suffering from schizophrenia spectrum disorder (SSD) has been well-established as a risk factor for offending. However, the majority of patients with an SSD do not show aggressive or criminal behavior. Yet, there is little research on clinical key features distinguishing offender from non-offender patients. Previous results point to poorer impulse control, higher levels of excitement, tension, and hostility, and worse overall cognitive functioning in offender populations. This study aimed to detect the most indicative distinguishing clinical features between forensic and general psychiatric patients with SSD based on the course of illness and the referenced hospitalization in order to facilitate a better understanding of the relationship between violent and non-violent offenses and SSD. Our study population consisted of forensic psychiatric patients (FPPs) with a diagnosis of F2x (ICD-10) or 295.x (ICD-9) and a control group of general psychiatric patients (GPPs) with the same diagnosis, totaling 740 patients. Patients were evaluated regarding their medical (and, if applicable, criminal) history and the referenced psychiatric hospitalization. Supervised machine learning (ML) was used to exploratively evaluate predictor variables and their interplay and rank them in accordance with their discriminative power. Out of 194 possible predictor variables, the following 6 turned out to have the highest influence on the model: olanzapine equivalent at discharge from the referenced hospitalization, a history of antipsychotic prescription, a history of antidepressant, benzodiazepine or mood stabilizer prescription, medication compliance, outpatient treatment(s) in the past, and the necessity of compulsory measures. Out of the seven algorithms applied, gradient boosting emerged as the most suitable, with an AUC of 0.86 and a balanced accuracy of 77.5%. Our study aimed to identify the most influential illness-related predictors, distinguishing between FPP and GPP with SSD, thus shedding light on key differences between the two groups. To our knowledge, this is the first study to compare a homogenous sample of FPP and GPP with SSD regarding their symptom severity and course of illness using highly sophisticated statistical approaches with the possibility of evaluating the interplay of all factors at play.

Duration of stay and rate of subsequent criminal conviction and hospitalisation for substance use among young people admitted to a short-term residential program.

This study examined the association between program duration and rate of criminal conviction and hospitalisation for substance use up to 15 years later among young people admitted to a short-term residential program for drug and alcohol use. Data were derived from linked administrative records of all clients referred to a modified therapeutic community for young people from January 2001 to December 2016 in New South Wales, Australia (n = 3059). Cox proportional hazards regression analyses examined the rate of conviction (separately for any offence, violent offence, non-violent offence and administrative offence) and hospitalisation for substance use, up to 15 years post-program among young people who attended treatment for 1-29 days, 30-59 days, 60-89 days and 90-120 days. Thirty days or more in treatment was independently associated with a lower rate of conviction for any offence and a non-violent offence, as well as hospitalisation for substance use, while 60 days or more was associated with a lower rate of conviction for a violent and administrative offence, relative to those who spent 1-29 days in the program. Additional months in the program were also associated with reduced rates of conviction and hospitalisation, although 90-120 days appeared to confer no additional benefits than 60-89 days. At least 60 days may be the minimum duration needed for short-term, therapeutic community programs to reduce the risk of conviction across all crime types and hospitalisation for substance use.

Community Perception Towards Criminal Women: A Case Study of District Swabi

Women who engage in criminal activities often face a complex set of challenges that go beyond the legal consequences of their actions. Society's perception of criminal women is often harsherthan that of their male counterparts, as women are traditionally viewed as caregivers and nurturers rather than as criminals. This perception is shaped by cultural and social norms, media representation,and individual biases. In this essay, we will explore the community's perception towards criminal women and the factors that influence it. These representations contribute to the stigmatization of criminal women, making it more difficult for them to reintegrate into society after serving their sentences. In this research, it is discussed how women in society are forced to commit a crime and what are the factors which make them do so. One of the factors that shape community perception towards criminal women is the nature of their offences. Women who engage in violent crimes are often viewed as more dangerous and threatening than those who commit non-violent offences.

A Gender- Based and Trauma-Informed Approach to Incarceration

For decades, women's imprisonment rate has grown twice as high as men's. Enforcement of low-level drug charges and low-level, nonviolent offenses is one of the contributing factors to the increase. Literature indicates that incarcerated women tend to experience poly-victimization and adverse childhood experiences, which causes severe mental health issues and risk behaviors. These adverse experiences compound with the harsh environment of imprisonment that further post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms (PTSD) and depression. Incarceration of women disrupts family systems within their community and creates an influx within their child welfare system. There is a lack of gender-specific reentry programs for incarcerated women. Developing trauma-informed criminal justice practices that address the needs of incarcerated women is crucial to ending the abuse of the prison pipeline. The current research will address an economic empowerment model to address socioeconomic deprivation, poverty, and financial independence for incarcerated women. The researcher will discuss barriers and opportunities to address trauma and abuse in incarcerated women by assessing the feasibility and effectiveness of the reentry and community correction services and programs in Kansas. Policy recommendations will be provided to suggest reforms and campaign for change.

The Collaborative Advocate: Psychiatrists' Role in Addressing Criminal Legal Involvement.

The Collaborative Advocate: Psychiatrists' Role in Addressing Criminal Legal Involvement.

The Joint Impact of Co-occupants and Co-defendants’ Criminal Behavior on Adolescents’ Criminal Behavior: A Cross-Lagged Analysis

The present study investigated the joint impact of co-occupants and codefendants criminal behavior on adolescent criminal behavior using official Dutch police records. Co-occupant and co-defendant criminal behavior were used as proxies for family and peer criminal behavior, respectively. Data spanning 8 years (2010–2017) were analyzed from 56,802 adolescents, their co-occupants and co-defendants. Cross-lagged analyses were used to investigate prospective effects of co-occupant and co-defendant delinquency on adolescent delinquency. For males, prospective effects were found of co-defendant on adolescent delinquency violent offences, violent property offences, and nonviolent property offences. For females, prospective effects of co-defendants’ delinquency were found for nonviolent property offences. Our findings underscore that having co-defendants with delinquent behavior is an important risk factor for delinquent activities in adolescence.

Mental health service utilisation and reoffending in offenders with a diagnosis of psychosis receiving non-custodial sentences: A 14-year follow-up study.

While psychosis is considered a risk factor for offending, little is reported about mental health service utilisation in offenders with psychosis and its relationship with reoffending. We examined the association between contact with mental health services and reoffending in those diagnosed with psychosis. We linked health and offending records in New South Wales (Australia) and identified all individuals with a diagnosis of psychosis and a subsequent offence resulting in a non-custodial sentence between 2001 and 2012. We examined the incidence and risk factors for reoffending, and time to reoffending between 2001 and 2015 using Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier survival methods. We specifically examined the association between clinical contact with community mental health services following the index offence and reoffending. Of the 7393 offenders with psychosis, 70% had clinical contact and 49% reoffended. There was a linear relationship between an increased number of clinical contacts and reduced risk of reoffending: those with no clinical contact had more than a fivefold risk of reoffending compared to those with the highest number of contacts (adjusted hazard ratio = 5.78, 95% confidence interval = [5.04, 6.62]). Offenders with substance-related psychosis and those convicted of non-violent offences had fewer clinical contacts and higher rates of reoffending when compared with controls (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.29, 95% confidence interval = [1.13, 1.47] and adjusted hazard ratio = 1.26, 95% confidence interval = [1.18, 1.35], respectively). This study supports an association between more frequent mental health service use and reduced risk of reoffending. Efforts to enhance mental health service utilisation in those with psychosis who are at a higher risk of reoffending should be promoted.

The role of symptoms of psychopathy in persistent violence over the criminal career into full adulthood

Purpose: The extant criminal career literature supports the assertion that risk factors for violent and non-violent offending are the same. However, such studies have not examined the role of psychopathic personality disturbance (PPD) in the development of persistent violence across the life course. A situational action theory perspective was used to help illustrate the utility of PPD in explaining persistent violent offending. Methods: Convictions for violent offense and non-violent offenses were measured for Canadian male (n = 262) and female (n = 64) offenders at each year between ages 12 and 28. Semi-parametric group-based modeling was used to identify joint trajectories of violent and non-violent offending. Symptoms of adolescent PPD and other criminogenic risk factors were also measured. Results: Through the joint trajectory model, five violent and five non-violent trajectories were identified. PPD emerged as a strong predictor of membership in the trajectory associated with chronic violent offending but lower levels of non-violent offending. Conclusions: Contrary to earlier criminal career research, the most persistent violent offenders were not also involved in the highest rate of general offending. Theories that help explain why individuals are involved in persistent violence are needed. Incorporating PPD into such a theoretical framework appears necessary.

Do Childhood Conduct Problems Predict Negative Outcomes in Adolescence? A Longitudinal Analysis

The primary purpose of this study was to conduct a prospective ­­­examination of the relationship between childhood conduct problems and five outcomes in adolescence– namely, Physically violent offenses; Non-violent offenses; Deviant lifestyle; Consumption of tobacco, cannabis, or alcohol; and Meeting the symptom count diagnostic criteria for Conduct Disorder (CD) – while controlling for a series of sociodemographic factors, family characteristics and adolescent experiences. Logistic regression analyses were used to determine if childhood conduct problems in the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY) Cycle 1 contributed to negative outcomes in adolescence in NLSCY Cycle 4. This was a prospective, population-based study of 3,725 adolescents (12-15 years old) in the NLSCY Cycle 4 (2000-2001) who were 6-9 years old in NLSCY Cycle 1 (1994-95). Childhood conduct problems were found to be associated with Non-violent offenses and Consumption of tobacco, cannabis, or alcohol in adolescence, but they were not found to be associated with Physically violent offenses or Deviant lifestyle in adolescence. Furthermore, children with conduct problems before the age of 10 were more likely to meet the symptom count diagnostic criteria for CD in adolescence.

A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Positive Family Holistic Health Intervention for Probationers in Hong Kong: A Mixed-Method Study.

Introduction: Probationers, offenders with less serious and non-violent offences, and under statutory supervision, have low levels of self-esteem and physical health, and high level of family conflict, and poorer quality of family relationships. This study examined the effectiveness of the existing probation service and the additional use of a positive family holistic health intervention to enhance physical, psychological, and family well-being in probationers and relationships with probation officers.Methods: Probationers under the care of the Hong Kong Social Welfare Department were randomized into a care-as-usual control group (CAU), a brief intervention group (BI) receiving two 1-h individual sessions [of a brief theory-based positive family holistic health intervention integrating Zero-time Exercise (simple and easy-to-do lifestyle-integrated physical activity) and positive psychology themes of “Praise and Gratitude” in the existing probation service], or a combined intervention group (CI) receiving BI and a 1-day group activity with family members. The outcomes were physical activity, fitness performance, self-esteem, happiness, anxiety and depression symptoms, life satisfaction, quality of life, family communication and well-being, and relationships with probation officers. Self-administered questionnaires and simple fitness tests were used at baseline, 1-month and 3-month follow-up. Linear mixed model analysis was used to compare difference in the changes of outcome variables among groups, adjusted of sex, age, and baseline values. Focus group interviews were conducted. Thematic content analysis was used.Results: 318 probationers (51% male) were randomized into CAU (n = 105), BI (n = 108), or CI (n = 105) group. CAU showed enhanced physical activity, fitness performance and psychological health, and family communication with small effect sizes (Cohen’s d: 0.19–0.41). BI and CI showed further improved physical activity, family communication and family well-being (Cohen’s d: 0.37–0.70). Additionally, CI reported greater improvements in the relationships with probation officers than CAU with a small effect size (Cohen’s d: 0.43). CI also reported greater increases in physical activity and family communication than BI with small to moderate effect sizes (Cohen’s d: 0.38–0.58). Qualitative feedbacks corroborated the quantitative findings.Conclusion: Our trial provided the first evidence of the effectiveness of probation service and the additional use of an innovative, relatively low-cost, theory-based brief positive family holistic health intervention. This intervention may offer a new model for enhancing probation service.Trial Registration: The research protocol was registered at the National Institutes of Health (identifier: NCT02770898).

Legal Financial Obligations and Probation: Findings from the 1995 Survey of Adults on Probation

During the late 20th century, imprisonment rates in the United States saw unprecedented growth, leading correctional systems across the country to face widespread overcrowding and underfunding. Subsequently, policy makers sought out alternatives to incarceration for certain categories of offenses. Community supervision, such as probation, emerged as a popular solution to both reduce prison and jail populations as well as to generate revenue to fund the rapidly expanding legal system. With the rise in community supervision came increases in the number of people on probation for lower-level and non-violent offenses. The expansion of legal financial obligations (LFO) placed additional burdens on these persons, who disproportionately sit in lower socio-economic status brackets. Using data from the 1995 Survey of Adults on Probation (SAP), the current study adds to the literature on probation and LFOs in an important way. The SAP data contain information on the amount, frequency, and type of LFO. Thus, this paper examines the distinct types of LFOs to determine the differential burden that each type of LFO has on people on probation. This paper finds that of all types of fees, those associated with victim restitution are most likely to lead to missed payments, while those that generate revenues do not contribute significantly to missed payments. This paper discusses the implications of this for procedural justice and fairness.

The necessity defence and anthropogenic global warming protests: The times they are a-changin’

The Extinction Rebellion protests of 2019 and 2020 resulted in peaceful protesters being charged for a range of minor, non-violent criminal offences. The defence to those charges is necessity, a defence tightly restricted in its use by the courts. This article argues that in the specific context of minor criminal offences committed during anthropogenic global warming (AGW) protests, necessity must be reconceptualised. This is particularly so given the growing international recognition of that defence in AGW protest matters, the increasing state prohibition on protest and the unique manner in which AGW protests subvert the strict application of the rule of law.

Міжнародні стандарти застосування сили (спеціальних засобів)

The article analyzes the content of the main international legal acts regulating the grounds, procedure and principles of using force (special means) to convicts in penitentiary institutions. An important factor in reforming and developing of criminal and executive legislation is Ukraine’s integration into the world community. Ukraine is a member of the United Nations, the Council of Europe and other international organizations. Partner states have made a legal commitment to bring national legislation into line with generally accepted principles and norms concerning the protection of human and civil rights and freedoms. In accordance with the Constitution of Ukraine, existing international treaties, the binding nature of which has been approved by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, are part of the national legislation of Ukraine. The development and adoption of new legislative acts is guided not only by the content of national legal norms, but also by international legal acts, in particular, by international standards. Dynamic approaches to security provision help to prevent situations in which prison staff will need to use special means, force or weapons. It is established that the International Standards regarding convicts’ trearment allow to use force in penitentiary institutions as a last mean to restrain prisoners, repel attacks on personnel and others, and to stop escapes if non-violent offenses cannot be stopped (general condition of use). International standards define the limits of the use of force as the minimum necessary and the duration of the use as the minimum time required to put an end to an unlawful act. Personnel working directly with prisoners should be trained in techniques that allow them to restrain aggressive prisoners with minimal use of force. Key words: international legal acts; use of force (special means); grounds for the use of force (special means); sentenced to imprisonment; personnel of penitentiary institutions

Stalkers: Specialists Versus Generalists.

AbstractIt is known that many domestic violence (DV) offenders also commit violent and nonviolent offences that are not domestic in nature. Stalking frequently evolves from DV contexts. The present study used police data to explore (i) the extent to which stalking offenders in Western Australia specialize in stalking, (ii) the frequency of involvement in DV offending by stalking offenders, and (iii) the types of offences that co-occur with stalking offences. The dataset covered 404 individuals who were identified by the Western Australia Police Force as the offender for a stalking offence between January 1st, 2003 and July 30th, 2017. Only a minority of the offenders specialized in stalking, with the majority offending in other ways against the index victim and also offending against others via a broad range of offences. Although less than 10% were recorded as having carried out domestic assaults, more than half had broken restraining orders. Like DV offenders, the stalkers in this sample were largely generalist offenders. It was not clear, however, what proportion of offences against the same index victim were directly related to stalking. Stalking is a course of conduct that often involves individual acts that may be offences in themselves. What is clearer is the finding that for many stalkers, stalking forms part of a wider pattern of antisocial activity. Those stalkers who do not specialize in stalking may be less likely to benefit from intervention efforts that are focused solely on stalking.

Long-Acting Injectable Antipsychotic Use in Patients with Schizophrenia and Criminal Justice System Encounters.

Background: Nonadherence to medication is prevalent in persons diagnosed with schizophrenia, thus increasing the likelihood of relapse, poor health outcomes, hospitalization, high treatment costs, and high rates of both violent and non-violent offenses.Objective: To assess the association between long-acting injectable (LAI) antipsychotic use and criminal justice system encounters in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.Methods: This retrospective follow-up study was conducted among patients aged ≥18 years treated for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder at a community mental health center in Akron, Ohio, between January 1, 2010, and June 15, 2016. The incidence of criminal justice system encounters at 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years pre- versus post-LAI antipsychotic initiation was assessed. A subanalysis was conducted for individuals with a history of prior arrest.Results: Overall, the risk ratio (RR) of having an encounter with the criminal justice system was significantly lower for patients treated with LAI antipsychotics 1 year after initiation of treatment compared with a similar time period prior to initiation (RR [95% confidence interval (CI)]: 0.74 [0.59–0.93]; P<0.01) and 2 years (0.74 [0.62–0.88]; P<0.0001). Statistically significant reductions in criminal justice system encounters after treatment than before treatment were observed in the once-monthly paliperidone palmitate (PP1M) cohort. The incidence of arrests was lower in the 6-month (27 vs 85 arrests), 1-year (46 vs 132 arrests) and 2-year (88 vs 196 arrests) periods post-index LAI medication than in the corresponding periods pre-index LAI medication among individuals with a history of prior arrest.Conclusions: Patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who were initiated on a LAI antipsychotic medication, specifically PP1M, were less likely to have an encounter with the criminal justice system compared with a similar time period before the initiation of LAI treatment.

Bill introduced to improve crisis response for people with MI, SUDs

The Partnership to End Addiction is urging support for the CAHOOTS Act (S. 764/H.R. 1914), according to a May 8 release. The program provides an appropriate crisis response for people with mental illness and substance use disorders. The Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets (CAHOOTS) program in Eugene, Oregon, has been providing this type of response for over 30 years. It dispatches mobile teams of health care and crisis workers, rather than police, to respond to individuals experiencing mental health or substance use disorder crises. The CAHOOTS Act would provide states with enhanced Medicaid funding to adopt their own community‐based mobile crisis services, as well as $25 million for grants to states to help establish, expand and evaluate mobile crisis programs (see MHW, June 22, 2020; Sept. 28, 2020). Jails and prisons are overcrowded with people arrested for minor, nonviolent offenses who would be better served through health and social services, the release stated. While often the default first responders, police are not adequately prepared to appropriately respond to behavioral health crises. Too often, police encounters with individuals with mental illness end tragically. The partnership is urging the public to send a letter to members of Congress to urge them to take action on this issue by co‐sponsoring the CAHOOTS Act to expand health care–based responses to crises related to mental health and substance use disorders, promote racial justice and reduce police violence.

A tale of “second chances”: an experimental examination of popular support for early release mechanisms that reconsider long-term prison sentences

ObjectivesThis study examines US popular support for mechanisms that provide early release and “second chances” for individuals serving long-term prison sentences.MethodsAn experiment using a national sample of US adults (N=836).ResultsData showed moderate, consistent levels of general support for using a range of commonly available “second chance” mechanisms that also extended to offenders convicted of both violent and non-violent offenses. Levels of support significantly varied by race, gender, and age. There was significantly more support for using certain mechanisms in response to the trafficking of serious drugs, which was fully mediated by participants’ views on the importance of the cost of incarceration.ConclusionsMembers of the public appear open and supportive to utilizing “second chance” mechanisms in a variety of contexts. Yet the cost of incarceration to taxpayers appears to particularly motivate increased public interest in using such mechanisms for offenders convicted of the trafficking of serious drugs.