Abstract
There has been a proliferation of offender reentry programs since the passage of the Second Chance Act in 2008, including an unprecedented expansion of treatment services into underserved rural areas. Review of Second Chance Act programming and observation of unmet mental health and substance abuse needs in justice settings contextualizes description of the Middle Tennessee Rural Reentry Program, a U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance funded intervention. The program targeted 209 adult female and male higher risk offenders that were dually diagnosed with mental health and substance abuse disorders for evidence based cognitive behavioral change oriented therapeutic treatment. While offender outcome indicators (recidivism and relapse) suggested program impact, barriers to implementing, delivering, and evaluating reentry programming in rural areas were also identified and orient discussion around evidence based demonstration and replication.
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Notes
Jail based programming has sharply increased due to multiplicative effects of the Second Chance Act, prison population reduction legislation redirecting the sanctioning of lower level felonies to community rather than prison settings in several states, and the national offender reentry movement.
A restrictive data collection and evaluation budget of less than 2 % of the total grant award precluded execution of rigorous mixed methods design attendant to fidelity demonstration and spuriousness reduction techniques necessary for effectiveness specification. Site visits included in-depth interviews with staff and participant focus group interviews that evidenced some (e.g., evidence based program design and participant enthusiasm) but not all (dosage and exposure) fidelity domains. Turnover in treatment staff and variable treatment staff credentials (college degree, professional licensure) indicated fidelity threats of program adaptation and professional qualifications.
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+ This research was funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice, Grant No. 2013-RW-BX-0011. Points of view are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official positions of the U.S. Department of Justice.
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Miller, H.V., Miller, J.M. Treating Dually Diagnosed Offenders in Rural Settings: Profile of the Middle Tennessee Rural Reentry Program. Am J Crim Just 42, 389–400 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-016-9368-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-016-9368-0