NCJ Number
213828
Journal
Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 42 Issue: 1 Dated: 2005 Pages: 1-22
Date Published
2005
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This study re-evaluated the Jacksonville, FL Breaking the Cycle (BTC) program, an alternative to incarceration program for pretrial defendants.
Abstract
The BTC program is a nationally funded pilot program that incorporates drug testing, referral to treatment, judicial supervision, and graduated sanctions for pretrial defendants. The findings supported the conclusions of the original national evaluation of the Jacksonville BTC program that showed no effect on offending rates among its participants in comparison to a control group. In an effort to understand why the program in Jacksonville produced no effects on recidivism, the authors examined the screening process for participants in Jacksonville and discovered that this site, unlike the two other sites examined during the national evaluation, screens for potential clients prior to the pretrial release decision, leading to the identification of a much larger pool of eligible participants. The authors also postulate that the reliance on cash bail as a prerequisite to program participation may serve as a barrier for African-Americans entering the program. This evaluation purposively used different samples, methodology, data, and analysis techniques than the original national evaluation study. Participants were 100 randomly sampled drug-charged defendants assigned to the BTC program and 100 similar defendants who received no treatment. The comparison group was selected through a systematic random sampling technique from a population of 2,000 subjects. Data were analyzed using T-test calculations and logistic regression models. Additional research is needed on why the Jacksonville program did not produce the reductions in recidivism realized in other BTC programs. One component of this follow-up research should focus on the use of cash bail as a barrier to program participation. Tables, figure, references