Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-7-2017
Abstract
Specialized mental health courts (MHCs) address the growing problem of defendants with mental illness cycling through the criminal justice system. Employing a mixed-methods approach, this article explores if MHCs can slow the “revolving door” of criminal justice involvement. We use quantitative data to evaluate the effectiveness of one MHC on different measures of criminal recidivism with logistic regression, event history analysis, and negative binomial regression. Modeling strategies report that graduates of MHC, defendants offered a dismissal of criminal charges, and defendants who maintained the same noncrisis mental health treatment while in court as they had prior to court had lower odds of new criminal charges, a longer time to a new criminal charge, and fewer new criminal charges. Qualitative data—court observations and interviews—suggest that providing incentives for program compliance, connecting defendants to planned mental health treatment services, and court completion are central to reducing recidivism.
Recommended Citation
Snedker, K. A., Beach, L. R., & Corcoran, K. E. (2017). Beyond the “Revolving Door?”: Incentives and Criminal Recidivism in a Mental Health Court. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 44(9), 1141-1162. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854817708395
Peer Reviewed
1
Copyright
International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology
Comments
This is a pre-copy-editing, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Criminal Justice and Behavior, volume 44, issue 9, in 2017 following peer review. This article may not exactly replicate the final published version. The definitive publisher-authenticated version is available online at https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854817708395.