Diversion program

Abstract: Youth crime is a serious social problem, as is the high proportion of young offenders in the juvenile justice system who have mental disorders. A recent policy innovation applies the theory of therapeutic jurisprudence and diverts youth with mental disorders to treatment in lieu of further court processing. The expansion of mental health diversion programs reflects an increasingly popular view that there is a causal relationship between youth mental disorders and crime. Policymakers who share this view place greater emphasis on rehabilitation and treatment as a way to reduce crime, rather than on stricter punishment. This paper considers the policy issues around youth mental health diversion programs. In addition, it evaluates the effect of a mental health diversion program for youth that was implemented in Texas. The paper finds that mental health diversion can be used effectively to delay or prevent youth recidivism.

Abstract: Factors related to successful completion of a first offender diversion program were examined from initial data of a longitudinal study of drug treatment court outcomes in Delaware. The strongest predictors of success were factors associated with social stakeholder values, especially those involving employment. Other factors associated with program completion included race, education, and frequency of drug use. While the overall success of drug treatment courts continues to be documented, these data suggest success varies with individual characteristics. The continuing study will explore whether these characteristics are also related to subsequent outcomes, especially drug use relapse and criminal recidivism, over a 24-month post-treatment period.

Abstract: Objective: The authors sought information on the number, structure, and effectiveness of programs aimedat diverting mentally ill inmates from the criminal justice system into the mental health treatment system. Methods: A working definition ofajail diversion program was developed. Mail surveys were distributed to 1,263 U. S. jails with a capacity of 5O or more detainees to ascertain the presence or absence of diversion programs. Telephone interviews with samples of respondents and nonrespondents to the mail survey yielded additional information about the programs' operation, funding, staffing, and directors' perceptions of their effectiveness. Results: Information obtained from the mail and telephone surveys indicated that only 52 U. S. jails with a capacity of 5O or more detainees had formal mental health diversion programs that fit the definition developed by the authors. Programs in larger jails servedfewer viokntfelons than did those in smaller jails. Threefourths of the programs were located in menta...

Abstract: The objective of this retrospective cohort study was to determine whether a jail diversion program significantly reduced the number of days of incarceration over the year following arrest in a sample of seriously mentally ill (SMI) people who had been arrested for a minor crime. Methods: A group of 314 SMI detainees were diverted out of jail and into mental health treatment. They were compared with a sample of 124 people who would have been eligible for diversion but were not diverted. For each group, the authors compared the total days incarcerated in the year after index arrest. Analyses indicated that jail diversion significantly reduced incarceration time during the next year (40.51 versus 172.84 days, p = .0001). However, the effect of diversion differed depending upon the level of criminal charge: diversion significantly reduced jail time only among those who were arrested for more serious offenses. Those arrested for Class D felony and Class A misdemeanor charges and diverted into mental health treatment spent significantly less time in jail in the next year than those not diverted (260 and 110 fewer days, respectively; p = .0001 for both). Those arrested for Class B or C misdemeanors had similar days incarcerated regardless of diversion. These results remained after adjusting for age, race, gender, and diagnosis. This study presents the first evidence that jail diversion may produce positive longitudinal criminal justice outcomes for SMI people. It also suggests that diversion may not reduce incarceration in all sub-groups of SMI people who are arrested for minor crimes.