In order to address the high prevalence of children’s exposure to violence, in 2010, eight sites around the country were selected by the U.S. Department of Justice for the Defending Childhood Demonstration Program. This national initiative aims: 1) to prevent children’s exposure to violence; 2) to mitigate the negative impact of such exposure when it does occur; and 3) to develop knowledge and spread awareness about children’s exposure to violence, both within and beyond the chosen pilot sites. The eight demonstration sites are:
Writing in the pages of Judges Journal, Center for Court Innovation Director of Mental Health Court Programs Carol Fisler discusses the implications of a growing body of research on the efficacy of mental health courts.
This study investigated the relationship between post-traumatic stress disorder and intimate partner violence perpetration in a representative sample of self-identified heterosexual adult men in the U.S.
This report evaluates a pilot program that screens misdemeanor defendants for mental health disorders. Those assigned to a brief mental health intervention were significantly less likely to be re-arrested within one year, compared with similar defendants who were not assigned to the intervention. Results were especially positive for female defendants.
Dr. Bryon Adinoff, Distinguished Professor of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Research at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the Director of Research in Mental Health at the VA North Texas Health Care System, talks about the latest research on addiction and pharmacological or medication-assisted treatment, as well as how they can impact the criminal justice system.
In this podcast, Center for Court Innovation researchers Rachel Swaner, Lama Ayoub, and Elise Jensen discuss their National Institute of Justice funded report on the United States Department of Justice's Defending Childhood Demonstration Program. The program, which began in 2010, funded eight pilot sites across the country to address children's exposure to violence. The Center produced a se
This book chapter by the Center for Court Innovation's research director summarizes the research demonstrating that the problem-solving judicial role directly contributes to reduced criminal behavior among program participants. The chapter also discusses individualized justice (assessing and responding to the needs of each defendant) and predictability (using standardized tools and generating clear expectations). Available in Offender Release and Supervision: The Role of Courts and the Use of Discretion, ed. Martine Herzog-Evans. Oisterwijk, Netherlands: Wolf Legal Publishers.
This report provides a process and outcome evaluation of QUEST Futures, a program designed to reduce repeat offending by young people with mental illnesses in the juvenile justice system by providing mental health assessments, treatment planning, service coordination and family support.
This report presents the results from a process evaluation examining the first three and a half years of the Manhattan Mental Health Court, a specialized docket for offenders with mental illness established in March 2011. Results from a mixed-methods research design found that the largest portion of participants (40%) were charged with property-related offenses. Seventy-three percent of participants were diagnosed as suffering from more than one serious mental illness and 63% were diagnosed with a co-occurring substance abuse disorder.
