Treatment Modality, Failure, and Re-Arrest: A Test of the Risk Principle With Substance-Abusing Criminal Defendants

• NCJ Number: 250816
• Journal: Journal of Drug Issues Volume: 46 Issue: 3 Dated: July 2016 Pages: 234-246
• Author(s): W. A. Reich; S. Picard-Fritsche; M. Rempel; E. J. Farley
• Date Published: July 2016
• Length: 13 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2010-IJ-CX-0031
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored)
• Award: Evidence-Based Screening and Assessment: A Randomized Trial of a Validated Assessment Tool in Three New York City Drug Courts

Annotation

This study tested the risk principle with 400 New York City drug-court participants, using demographic data and data on criminal history, instant case, treatment modality, program failure, and rearrest.

Abstract

Actuarial risk scores were created for program failure and re-arrest by performing stepwise logistic regressions based on criminal history, present case, and demographic predictors of these outcomes. Placement in a residential (vs. outpatient) setting increased the likelihood of program failure and re-arrest after controlling for actuarial risk scores. Residential placement was particularly counter-productive with low-risk program participants, whose re-arrest rate was more than double that of low-risk participants placed in an outpatient setting. Conversely, placement of low-risk participants in the least restrictive treatment modalitya non-intensive outpatient settinglowered the likelihood of re-arrest relative to placement either in a residential setting or an intensive outpatient program. Results are discussed in terms of the Risk-need-responsivity model of offender intervention, which recommends avoiding overly restrictive treatment of low-risk offenders. 26 references (Publisher abstract modified)