People with Complex Needs and the Criminal Justice System

Hamilton, Margaret

doi:10.1080/10345329.2010.12035888

Cited by 18 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Challenges associated with transitioning from prison to the community, including financial and relationship stress, social isolation and stigma, can be heightened for people with histories of drug dependence and mental and physical health comorbidities [ 15 – 17 ] and contribute to post-release service access barriers [ 18 ]. For those with drug dependence histories, return to drug use [ 19 ] and recidivism [ 20 ] following release and reincarceration are also common.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Prison and Transition Health (PATH) Cohort Study: Study Protocol and Baseline Characteristics of a Cohort of Men with a History of Injecting Drug Use Leaving Prison in Australia

et al. 2019

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People who inject drugs (PWID) are disproportionately represented among individuals who experience imprisonment and often have more complex physical and mental health needs than people in prison without injecting histories. The trajectories of PWID after prison release are poorly understood, hampering the development of effective strategies to address their distinct health needs. The Prison and Transition Health (PATH) Cohort Study is characterising the post-release trajectories of incarcerated male PWID in Victoria, Australia. We outline study methodology and baseline characteristics of participants prior to their release. Four hundred participants were recruited from three prisons and completed researcher-administered baseline interviews covering socio-demographics, social supports, physical health, mental health, alcohol and other drug use, and pre-release and transitional service utilisation. The median age among participants was 36 years (IQR 30–42), and they reported a median of five (IQR 3–9) previous adult incarcerations. Almost half (49%) were reliant on government payments prior to incarceration. One quarter (25%) of participants reported removal from their parents’ care as children and 64% reported being a parent or primary caregiver to children. Most participants (81%) reported a previous mental health diagnosis and 44% reported three or more diagnoses. The most common drugs injected prior to incarceration were crystal methamphetamine (80%) and heroin (62%), and most (85%) reported being under the influence of drugs at the time of committing offences for which they were currently incarcerated. Injecting drug use during their current sentence was reported by 40% of participants, and 48% reported engaging with some form of drug treatment during their current sentence. Study participants are characterised by significant mental health and substance use morbidities, social disadvantage and criminogenic histories that present challenges for the provision of post-release support services. Data from the PATH Cohort Study will help inform strategies to improve the health and social outcomes of this population.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Prison and Transition Health (PATH) Cohort Study: Study Protocol and Baseline Characteristics of a Cohort of Men with a History of Injecting Drug Use Leaving Prison in Australia

et al. 2019

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“…Publications reporting on social support needs at release predominantly focused on instrumental resources, although emotional and informational support were also discussed . The burden of poverty and the need to enhance employment prospects for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ex‐offenders were identified, but the most commonly reported social support need in the literature related to housing.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Authors identified that emphasis in re‐entry programs and post‐release services was on meeting social support needs, in particular housing . Health needs were not usually a priority.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people leaving prison meet their health and social support needs?

Abbott

Lloyd

Joshi

et al. 2017

Australian J Rural Health

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The objective of this review was to synthesise evidence on the health and social support needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people leaving prison and on programs which aid successful community re-entry. A systematic literature review was undertaken of peer-reviewed and grey literature published between 2001 and 2013, focusing on the post-release needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults and pre-and post-release programs. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have high health and social support needs on leaving prison. There is little literature evidence that re-entry programs commonly consider health needs, support linkages with primary care or Aboriginal Medical Services, or are designed in consideration of the particular needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. In the absence of evaluative evidence on re-entry programs in this group, we have synthesised the best practice recommendations. Re-entry programs must be culturally competent in design and delivery, holistic, take a longterm view, involve families and communities, demonstrate interagency coordination and promote linkages between prison and community-based services. There is an urgent need for accessible pre-and post-release programs which meet the particular needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, including their health needs. Programs must be flexible, comprehensive and accessible to those on remand or with short sentences. Stronger linkage with primary care and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community controlled health organisations is recommended.

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“…Some of the most vulnerable populations in the United States struggle with a complex combination of needs, including homelessness, substance addiction, ongoing mental and physical health conditions, and long-term unemployment. For many, these challenges can lead to interactions with the criminal justice system [28]. Of the millions of people who are incarcerated in jails and prisons each year, more than half have a current or recent mental health problem and inmates are far more likely to have experienced homelessness or substance dependence.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Case study

Rodolfa

Salomon

Haynes

et al. 2020

Proceedings of the 2020 Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency

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The criminal justice system is currently ill-equipped to improve outcomes of individuals who cycle in and out of the system with a series of misdemeanor offenses. Often due to constraints of caseload and poor record linkage, prior interactions with an individual may not be considered when an individual comes back into the system, let alone in a proactive manner through the application of diversion programs. The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office recently created a new Recidivism Reduction and Drug Diversion unit (R2D2) tasked with reducing recidivism in this population. Here we describe a collaboration with this new unit as a case study for the incorporation of predictive equity into machine learning based decision making in a resource-constrained setting. The program seeks to improve outcomes by developing individually-tailored social service interventions (i.e., diversions, conditional plea agreements, stayed sentencing, or other favorable case disposition based on appropriate social service linkage rather than traditional sentencing methods) for individuals likely to experience subsequent interactions with the criminal justice system, a time and resource-intensive undertaking that necessitates an ability to focus resources on individuals most likely to be involved in a future case. Seeking to achieve both efficiency (through predictive accuracy) and equity (improving outcomes in traditionally under-served communities and working to mitigate existing disparities in criminal justice outcomes), we discuss the equity outcomes we seek to achieve, describe the corresponding choice of a metric for measuring predictive fairness in this context, and explore a set of options for balancing equity and efficiency when building and selecting machine learning models in an operational public policy setting. CCS CONCEPTS• Applied computing → Computing in government; Law, social and behavioral sciences; • Social and professional topics →

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People with Complex Needs and the Criminal Justice System

Cited by 18 publications

References 4 publications

The Prison and Transition Health (PATH) Cohort Study: Study Protocol and Baseline Characteristics of a Cohort of Men with a History of Injecting Drug Use Leaving Prison in Australia

The Prison and Transition Health (PATH) Cohort Study: Study Protocol and Baseline Characteristics of a Cohort of Men with a History of Injecting Drug Use Leaving Prison in Australia

Do programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people leaving prison meet their health and social support needs?

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