Toward the end of 2006, a pilot program was launched in Israel wherein licensed-released prisoners were put under electronic monitoring (EM). In addition to EM, the pilot program, operated by the Prisoners' Rehabilitation Authority, provides programs of occupational supervision and personal therapy and is designed to allow for early release of those prisoners who, without increased supervision, would have been found unsuitable for early release.
The aim of this study was to ascertain whether participation in the EM program among licensed-released prisoners in Israel might bring about lessened recidivism. For that matter, rates of arrests and incarceration were examined during a follow-up period of up to 4 years, among the entirety of licensed-released prisoners participating in the EM program between the years 2007 and 2009 (n = 155).
To compare recidivism rates, a control group was assembled from among the entirety of released prisoners who were found unsuitable for early release in judicial conditions, and had therefore served the full term of their incarceration, to be released between the years 2005 and 2006 (a period of time during which an EM program was not yet operated among licensed-released prisoners in Israel).
Study findings clearly show that while among the control group, 42% of released prisoners were re-incarcerated, at the end of a 4-year follow-up period, only 15% among the study group had returned to prison.
These findings can be explained by combining the Social Control theory and the Self-Control theory which consider the period of time under EM program and the occupational and familial integration tools for reducing criminal connections and enhancing pro-social behavior.
Via: http://ht.ly/S78hx
By: Shoham E1, Yehosha-Stern S2, Efodi R3.
- 1Ashkelon Academic College, Israel
- 2Ashkelon Academic College, Israel.
- 3Prisoners Rehabilitation Authority, Jerusalem, Israel.
The topic of ‘illegal’ immigration is currently the focus of intense ideological and policy debate in the United States. A common assertion is that those without legal immigration status are disproportionately involved in criminal offending relative to other foreign-born populations.
The current study examines the long-term recidivism patterns of a group of male removable aliens compared to those foreign-born with legal authorisation to be present in the United States. The sample includes 1297 foreign-born males released from the Los Angeles County Jail during a 1-month period in 2002, and the follow-up period extends through 2011.
Using three measures of rearrest and a rigorous counterfactual modelling approach, we find no statistically significant differences between the two groups in likelihood, frequency, or timing of first rearrest over 9 years. The findings do not lend support to arguments that removable aliens pose a disproportionate risk of repeat involvement in local criminal justice systems.
Via: http://ht.ly/RXS5e
By: Jennifer S. Wong, Laura J. Hickman, Marika Suttorp-Booth
- a School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada
- b Criminology and Criminal Justice Division, Portland State University, Portland, OR, USA
- c Quantitative Analyst, RAND, Santa Monica, CA, USA
Given that sexual offenders are more likely to reoffend with a nonsexual offence than a sexual
offence, it is useful to have risk scales that predict general recidivism among sexual offenders.
In
the current study, we examined the extent to which two commonly used risk scales for sexual
offenders (Static-99R and Static-2002R) predict violent and general recidivism, and whether it
would be possible to improve predictive accuracy for these outcomes by revising their items.
Based on an aggregated sample of 3,536 adult male sex offenders from Canada, US, and Europe
(average age of 39 years), we found that a scale created from age at release and the general
criminality subscale of Static-2002R predicted nonsexual violent, any violent, and general
recidivism significantly better than Static-99R or Static-2002R total scores.
The convergent
validity of this new scale (Brief Assessment of Recidivism Risk – 2002R; BARR-2002R) was
examined in a new, independent dataset of Canadian high risk adult male sex offenders (N =
360) where it was found to be highly correlated with other risk assessment tools for general
recidivism and the PCL-R, and demonstrated similar discrimination and calibration as in the
development sample. Instead of using total scores from the Static-99R or Static-2002R, we
recommend that evaluators use the BARR-2002R for predicting violent and general recidivism
among sex offenders, and for screening for the psychological dimension of antisocial orientation.
Via (PDF): http://goo.gl/mRyVl7
By: Kelly M. Babchishin
University of Ottawa Institute of
Mental Health Research, Royal Ottawa Hospital
Despite the growing number of women involved in the criminal justice system, most
risk assessment tools used with this population were developed on male offenders,
fuelling debate about whether these tools should be used with women. This study
investigated the predictive validity of one such dynamic tool the Dynamic Risk
Assessment for Offender Re-entry (DRAOR) with a sample of female and male parolees.
Unexpectedly, the DRAOR subscales predicted recidivism for women, but not
for men, and the acute risk subscale independently contributed to recidivism prediction. Furthermore, the DRAOR incrementally predicted women’s recidivism above static risk. These results support the use of the DRAOR with women offenders, and
more generally, a ‘gender-neutral’ approach to risk assessment tools for women.
Via (PDF): http://goo.gl/KdRe0s
By: Julia A. Yesberg
Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand
INTRODUCTION:
Borderline
personality disorder (BPD) is a severely disabling condition, associated with
substantially increased risk of deliberate self-harm and, particularly in men,
also with interpersonal violence and other criminal behavior. Although BPD
might be common among prison inmates, little is known about prevalence and
psychiatric comorbidity in probationers and parolees.
RESULTS:
We
ascertained a final DSM-5 BPD prevalence rate of 19.8%.
The most common current comorbid disorders among subjects with BPD were
antisocial personality disorder (91%), major depressive disorder (82%),
substance dependence (73%), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
(70%), and alcohol dependence (64%). Individuals diagnosed with BPD had
significantly more current psychiatric comorbidity than
interviewed participants not fulfilling BPD criteria. Participants with
BPD also reported substantially more symptoms of ADHD, anxiety and depression
compared to all subjects without BPD.
CONCLUSIONS:
BPD
affected one fifth of probationers and was related to serious mental ill-health
known to affect recidivism risk. The findings suggest further study of possible
benefits of improved identification and treatment of BPD in offender
populations.
- 1Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: dan.wetterborg@ki.se.
- 2Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden; Swedish Prison and Probation Services R&D Unit, 601 80 Norrköping, Sweden. Electronic address: niklas.langstrom@ki.se.
- 3Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Behavioural Sciences and Learning, Linköping University, 581 83 Linköping, Sweden. Electronic address: gerhard.andersson@liu.se.
- 4Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: pia.enebrink@ki.se.
Below: Survival curve for firesetting recidivism among participants with further arson offences (n = 56).
The rate of firesetting recidivism, based on charges, was very low (5.3%) compared with the rate of general recidivism (55.4%); the vast majority of firesetting recidivists were mixed (criminally versatile) offenders (91%). The study found that general criminality, firesetting history, and psychiatric disorder were associated with firesetting recidivism.
When assessing risk of firesetting recidivism, clinicians need to consider general criminality in addition to fire-specific history, and the potential impacts of mental disorder on recidivism.
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