CAROLINA JUSTICE POLICY CENTER
Community Services Conference
Chapel Hill, NC - May 16, 2014
Dennis Schrantz
Center for Justice Innovation
Michigan Council on Crime and Delinquency
www.miccd.org
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Jail systems in the U.S. are crowded at both the pre-trial and posttrial stages of the justice process.
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Crowding in jails affects sentencing decisions. Judges – who are
cognizant of local conditions – may sentence more defendants to
prison due to local crowding.
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As a result, crowding is often more pronounced at the pre-trial
stage.
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Release-and-detention decisions made by judges carry enormous
consequences for both the community and defendants.
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But less than 10% of judicial officers across the country use pretrial
risk assessment tools to make these decisions showing a disregard
for evidence based practices – which begin with validated risk and
need assessment
The Arnold Foundation, The Hidden Costs of Pretrial Detention, Lowenkamp, et al, Nov, 2013
And yet….. a recent study (Lowenkamp, 2013) found that:
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Longer pretrial detentions, up to a certain point, are associated
with the likelihood of Failure to Appear pending trial, particularly
for low risk defendants.
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Longer pretrial detentions are associated with the likelihood of new
criminal activity pending trial, particularly true for defendants
deemed to be low risk. The longer low-risk defendants are
detained, the more likely they are to have new criminal activity
pending trial.
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Being detained pretrial for two days or more is related to the
likelihood of post-disposition recidivism. .. as the length of time in
pretrial detention increases, so does the likelihood of recidivism at
both the 12-month and 24-month points.
The Arnold Foundation, Assessing Pretrial Risk without a Defendant Interview;
Lowenkamp, et al, Nov, 2013
Sheriffs and jail administrators are in a unique position to lead the charge
on the use of evidence-based and best practices in their communities by
virtue of their professionalism and standing in the system.
Particularly when considering improved jail reentry, best practices begin
with designing a systems approach or “blueprint” that expresses how the
jail wants to operate within the context of state and local justice system
performance expectations and goals.
Internal systems planning requires managers to specify the logic of their
effort.
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When the logical connections among outcomes, practices, the rationale,
and assessment of stakeholders are specified, systems can improve
programmatic capabilities, reduce costs and increase performance.
A Blueprint creates…” a common architecture for understanding and
improving system processes… to optimize the flow of work and
information …to facilitate the most efficient and appropriate use of
resources…explore a variety of evidence-based improvements and build
an infrastructure to monitor results.
Northpointe, Inc. , Copyright 2011 – Used with Permission
The Five Principle Functions of a Jail Blueprint
HANDOUT
Workload Demand: This defines the demands on the system based on state
and local policy (and politics), economic conditions, community and
demographic factors that shape the size and the characteristics of the jail
population.
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What is expected of the jail in terms of responding to these demands?
Strategic Direction: This is the way that jails expect to do business, stressing
the values of the leadership and staff and the evidence based principles they
will follow.
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The strategic direction communicates internally and externally what the
people who run the jail believe in.
These values and principles communicate to state and community partners a
level of confidence that the jail can be/is effective and can produce the best
results possible (e.g. better manage jail beds, reduce the need for jail beds,
reduce recidivism, and help prevent future crime)?
The Five Principle Functions of a Jail Blueprint (cont’d)
Case Management Logic: Describes the work that will be done to produce the
desired outcomes as a direct result of the values and principles driving jail
operations and the supervision of inmates post-release – which is occurring
more frequently due to “workload demands” (for example, AB109 in CA, jail
crowding and emergency releases to supervision in urban jails).
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The case management logic communicates how those values and principles
will dictate jail operations at a case level – and in some jurisdictions, after the
stay in jail moves into community supervision.
The value of the case management approach increases as the alignment with
evidence-based principles improves.
The blueprint helps focus expectations on effectiveness and ways that
performance will be measured.
Effective assessment and case planning technologies will ensure that the
information required to implement the case management logic is in place.
The Five Principle Functions of a Jail Blueprint (cont’d)
Performance Outcomes: Captures the definitions of what the jail leadership and
staff and the community expect to achieve, particularly when new initiatives are
put into place.
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Process measures should be detailed; for example, risk and need
assessments being conducted, case plans being driven by those
assessments, etc.
Impact measures should be detailed relating, of course, to crime reduction
and improved system outcomes.
Again, effective assessment and case planning technologies will ensure that
the information required to monitor and report on performance are in place.
The Five Principle Functions of a Jail Blueprint (cont’d)
Infrastructure: Infrastructure includes a range of capacities including
technology, funding, policy formation, staffing and training, buildings,
equipment, communication and coordination mechanisms and management
activities.
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This is the place to determine what is needed compared to what is in place
through a “assets, barriers, gaps” assessment which can help drive
Clearly inventorying existing and needed infrastructure is especially
important because infrastructure for supporting effective services are usually
extensive, undervalued by the public, difficult to maintain, constantly
changing, and routinely cut across numerous agency boundaries in the
human services and justice system.
They are fundamental and will need to be more fully addressed depending on
Workload Demands and Performance Expectations
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Mapping the case-flow process (the jail case logic model) is a way
for systems to align decisions beginning in the jail and continuing in
the community as a jail reentry process.
The justice and human service systems are characterized by a
common series of decision points that form a literal “playing field”
upon which the efforts of a variety of local partners play out to
produce outcomes. As a result, the agencies that make up the
system must work to specify the design and quality of the decisions
within their responsibility.
These agencies are responsible for assuring the flow of information
into and out of their decision processes.
These efforts help assure the alignment required to demonstrate
system performance and outcomes.
A FIVE STEP PROCESS
HANDOUT
1.
Assess Risk (Jail Intake): Assess offender risk level and target offenders
who pose the highest risk for re-offending
2.
Assess Need and Responsivity: Administer assessment battery to identify
the offender’s criminogenic needs and dynamic risk factors (full COMPAS).
3.
Develop Behavior Management Plan: Utilize risk, need, and responsivity
assessment results to inform the development of an individualized case
plan guiding the types and levels of services required to address needs.
4.
Deliver Programs: Deliver Cognitive-Behavioral Based Programs offering
varying levels of dosage (duration and intensity).
5.
Measure Progress: Conduct periodic case reviews to evaluate progress,
update treatment plans, measure treatment gains, and determine
appropriateness for program completion.
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With the jail reentry case flow process specified, there is an
opportunity to explore how the community-based case
management process occurs.
The Case Management Logic Model provides a framework for
linking casework with performance, a critical linkage in
establishing the effectiveness of the approach.
The Case Management Logic includes assessment,
interpretation, case planning, execution and evaluation.
Specifying these fundamental stages of case management
helps to standardize and communicate the approach while
providing an objective reflection of the strengths and
weaknesses of the process.
A FIVE STEP PROCESS
1. Review Assessed Risk: Review risk and need assessment
to determine supervision recommendation and review
reentry case plan
2. Finalize Case Supervision -Behavior Management Plan:
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Assign Supervision Level
Finalize Plan (specific tasks, activities and responsibilities)
Identify Incentives
Establish Restrictions and Expectations
Refer for Treatment and Other Services to Address Needs, Goals
and Tasks in Plan
3. Monitor Progress with Conditions and Plan:
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Monitor Conduct and Conditions Compliance
Reward Compliance and Progress
Respond to Non-Compliance
Evaluate & Revise Plan & Conditions
Update Goals, Set New Expectations, Identify New Incentives
4. Discharge from Supervision
5. Outcomes:
◦ Minimize Criminal Activity During Period of Parole
◦ Minimize Technical Violations, Revocations
◦ Reduce Rates of Recidivism