PROFILE OF CHARACTERISTICS DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN PROGRAM COMPLETERS AND PROGRAM NON-COMPLETERS AT MASSACHUSETTS HALFWAY HOUSES, INC, 1977 AND 1978 RELEASES

• NCJ Number: 69241
• Author(s): L T WILLIAMS
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 61 pages
• Corporate Author: Massachusetts Dept of Correction
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Publication Type: Statistics
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

A MASSACHUSETTS CORRECTIONS REPORT EXAMINES THE CHARACTERISTICS THAT DISTINGUISH BETWEEN PROGRAM COMPLETERS AND NON-COMPLETERS FOR RESIDENTS RELEASED FROM MASSACHUSETTS HALFWAY HOUSES, INC. DURING 1977 AND 1978.

Abstract

A PROGRAM COMPLETER AT A STATE-CONTRACTED HALFWAY HOUSE FACILITY IS DEFINED AS ANY RESIDENT WHO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED HIS OR HER STAY AT MASSACHUSETTS HALFWAY HOUSES, INC. (MHHI) AND WAS RELEASED TO THE STREETS EITHER BY PERMIT OF THE PAROLE BOARD OR BY A CERTIFICATE OF DISCHARGE. ALSO, INDIVIDUALS WHO RECEIVED A LATERAL TRANSFER TO A SIMILAR SECURITY INSTITUTION ARE INCLUDED AS PROGRAM COMPLETERS. A PROGRAM NON-COMPLETER WAS DEFINED AS ANY RESIDENT WHO DID NOT COMPLETE HIS OR HER STAY AT MHHI BUT WAS INSTEAD RETURNED TO HIS OR HER SENDING INSTITUTION OR AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER SECURITY. DURING 1977, 137 OF THE 182 RESIDENTS RELEASED WERE SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM COMPLETERS; IN 1978, 98 OF THE 139 RELEASED INDIVIDUALS WERE SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM COMPLETERS. COMMITMENT, BACKGROUND, AND CRIMINAL HISTORY VARIABLES FOR ALL RELEASED RESIDENTS IN BOTH YEARS WERE CHARACTERIZED ACCORDING TO A SERIES OF SPLITS FOR THE COMPLETION SAMPLE OF EACH YEAR AND FOR BOTH YEARS TOGETHER. FOR THE TOTAL COMBINED SAMPLE OF 1977 AND 1978 RELEASES, THERE WERE 14 VARIABLES THAT PRODUCED STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN COMPLETERS AND NON-COMPLETERS: 1) NUMBER OF FURLOUGHS, 2) PRIOR JUVENILE INCARCERATIONS, 3) AGE AT FIRST ARREST, 4) NUMBER OF JUVENILE PAROLES AND JUVENILE PAROLE VIOLATIONS, 5) NUMBER OF PRIOR CHARGES FOR CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY, 6) COMMITTING INSTITUTION, 7) NUMBER OF SUCCESSFUL FURLOUGH OUTCOMES, 8) NUMBER OF PRIOR COURT APPEARANCES, 9) NUMBER OF ESCAPE FURLOUGH OUTCOMES, 10) MINIMUM SENTENCE, 11) AGE AT RELEASE, 12) NUMBER OF PRIOR CHARGES FOR ESCAPE OFFENSES, 13) AGE AT PRE-RELEASE PLACEMENT, 14) NUMBER OF PRIOR CHARGES FOR CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT THESE DATA, WHICH CAN BE USED TO DETERMINE INDIVIDUAL PROBABILITIES OF HALFWAY HOUSE SUCCESS, CAN BE VERY BENEFICIAL IN FOCUSING ON THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE A LOW PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS IN ORDER TO TAKE STEPS TO ATTEMPT TO POSITIVELY IMPACT THIS SUB-GROUP OF THE POPULATION. EXTENSIVE DATA TABLES ARE PROVIDED IN SIX APPENDICES. A SHORT LIST OF REFERENCES IS ALSO PROVIDED.