Community-based alternatives to conviction and imprisonment for adult offenders with severe mental illness are receiving increasing attention from researchers and policy makers. After discussing the justifications that have been offered in support of community-based alternatives, this article reviews the current empirical evidence relevant to such alternatives. The authors use the sequential intercept model as a guide and summarize the existing research at several points along the criminal justice continuum. They conclude by highlighting the gaps in existing research and discussing the need for further research in several key areas.
AndrewsD.BontaJ. (2006). The psychology of criminal conduct (4th ed.). Newark, NJ: LexisNexis/Mathew Bender.
2.
BelenkoS. (1998). Research on drug courts: A critical review. National Drug Court Institute Review, 1, 1-42.
3.
BelenkoS. (1999). Research on drug courts: A critical review: 1999 update. National Drug Court Institute Review, 2, 1-58.
4.
BelenkoS. (2001). Research on drug courts: A critical review: 2001 update. New York, NY: National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.
5.
BelenkoS.PatapisN.FrenchM. (2005). Economic benefits of drug treatment: A critical review of the evidence for policy makers. Philadelphia, PA: Treatment Research Institute.
6.
Bertman-PateL.BurnettD.ThompsonJ.CalhounC.DelandS.FryouR. (2004). The New Orleans Forensic Aftercare Clinic: A seven year review of hospital discharged and jail diverted clients. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 22, 159-169.
7.
BhatiA.RomanJ.ChalfinA. (2008). To treat or not to treat: Evidence on the prospects of expanding treatment to drug-involved offenders. Washington, DC: Urban Institute.
8.
BorumR.WilliamsM.DeansM.SteadmanH.MorrisseyJ. (1998). Police perspectives on responding to mentally ill people in crisis: Perceptions of program effectiveness. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 16, 393-405.
9.
BronerN.LattimoreP.CowellA.SchlengerW. (2004). Effects of diversion on adults with co-occurring mental illness and substance use: Outcomes from a national multi-site study. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 22, 519-541.
10.
BronerN.MayrlD.LandsbergG. (2005). Outcomes of mandated and nonmandated New York City diversion for offenders with alcohol, drug, and mental disorders. Prison Journal, 85, 18-49.
CaseB.SteadmanH.DupuisS.MorrisL. (2009). Who succeeds in jail diversion programs for persons with mental illness? A multi-site study. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 27, 661-674.
13.
ComptonM.BahoraM.WatsonA.OlivaJ. (2008). A comprehensive review of extant research on crisis intervention team (CIT) programs. Journal of American Academic Psychiatry and the Law, 36, 47-55.
14.
ComptonM.ChienV. (2008). Factors related to knowledge retention after crisis intervention team training for police officers. Psychiatric Services, 59, 1049-1051.
15.
ComptonM.NeubertB.Demir BroussardB.McGriffJ.MorganR.OlivaJ. (2011). Use of force preferences and perceived effectiveness of actions among crisis intervention team police officers and non-CIT officers in an escalating psychiatric crisis involving a subject with schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 37, 737-745. doi:10.1093/schbul/sbp14610.1093/schbul/sbp146.
16.
CosdenM.EllensJ.SchnellJ.Yamini-DioufY.WolfeM. (2003). Evaluation of a mental health treatment court with assertive community treatment. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 21, 415-427.
17.
DeschenesE.TurnerS.GreenwoodP. (1995). Drug court or probation? An experimental evaluation of Maricopa County’s Drug Court. Justice System Journal, 18, 55-73.
18.
DupontR.CochranS. (2000). Police response to mental health emergencies: Barriers to change. Journal of American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 28, 338-344.
19.
Eno LoudenJ.SkeemJ.CampJ.ChristensenE. (2008). Supervising probationers with mental disorder: How do agencies respond to violations?Criminal Justice and Behavior, 35, 832-847.
20.
EricksonS.CampbellA.LambertiJ. (2006). Variations in mental health courts: Challenges, opportunities, and a call for caution. Community Mental Health Journal, 42, 335-344.
21.
FrazerM. (2006). The impact of the community court model on defendant perceptions of fairness: A case study at the Red Hook Community Justice Center. New York, NY: Center for Court Innovation.
22.
GodleyS.FinchM.DouganL.McDonnellM.McDermeitM. (2000). Case management for dually diagnosed individuals involved in the criminal justice system. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 18, 137-148.
23.
GottfredsonD.ExumM. (2002). The Baltimore City Drug Court: One-year results from a randomized study. Journal of Research on Crime and Delinquency, 39, 337-356.
24.
GottfredsonD.NajakaS.Kearley. (2003). Effectiveness of drug treatment courts: Evidence from a randomized trial. Criminology & Public Policy, 2, 171-196.
25.
Government Accountability Office. (2005). Adult drug courts: Evidence indicates recidivism reductions and mixed results for other outcomes. Washington, DC: Author.
26.
HakutaJ.SoroushianV.KralsteinD. (2008). Do community courts transform the justice response to misdemeanor crime? Testing the impact of the Midtown Community Court. New York, NY: Center for Court Innovation.
27.
HartwellS. (2010). Ex-inmates with psychiatric disabilities returning to the community from correctional custody: The forensic transition team approach after a decade. In PeyrotM.BurnsS. (Eds.), Research in social problems and public policy: Vol. 17. New approaches to social problems treatment (pp. 263-283). Bingley, UK: Emerald.
28.
HidayV.RayB. (2010). Arrests two years after exiting a well-established mental health court. Psychiatric Services, 61, 463-468.
29.
HoffR.BaranoskyM.BuchananJ.ZonanaH.RosenheckR. (1999). The effects of a jail diversion program on incarceration: A retrospective cohort study. Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 27, 377-386.
30.
Justice Education Center. (2002). Evaluation of the Hartford Community Court. Hartford, CT: Author.
KralsteinD. (2005). Community court research: A literature review. New York, NY: Center for Court Innovation.
33.
LambertiJ.DeemA.WeismanR.LaDukeC. (2011). The role of probation in forensic assertive community treatment. Psychiatric Services, 62, 418-421.
34.
LambertiJ.WeismanR.FadenD. (2004). Forensic assertive community treatment: Preventing incarceration of adults with severe mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 55, 1285-1293.
35.
LambertiJ.WeismanR.SchwarzkopfS.PriceN.AshtonR.TrompeterJ. (2001). The mentally ill in jails and prisons: Towards an integrated model of prevention. Psychiatric Quarterly, 72, 63-77.
36.
LowenkampC.HolsingerA.LatessaE. (2005). Are drug courts effective? A meta-analytic review. Journal of Community Corrections, 15(1), 5-10.
37.
McCoyM.RobertsD.HanrahanP.ClayR.LuchinsD. (2004). Jail linkage assertive community treatment services for individuals with mental illnesses. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 27, 243-250.
38.
McNielD.BinderR. (2007). Effectiveness of a mental health court in reducing criminal recidivism and violence. American Journal of Psychiatry, 164, 1395-1404.
39.
MooreM.HidayV. (2006). Mental health court outcomes: A comparison of re-arrest and re-arrest severity between mental health court and traditional court participants. Law and Human Behavior, 30, 659-674.
40.
MorrisseyJ.MeyerP.CuddlebackG. (2007). Extending assertive community treatment to criminal justice settings: Origins, current evidence, and future directions. Community Mental Health Journal, 43, 527-544.
41.
MunetzM.GriffinP. (2006). Use of the sequential intercept model as an approach to decriminalization of people with serious mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 57, 544-549.
42.
National GAINS Center. (2002). The Nathaniel Project: An alternative to incarceration program for people with serious mental illness who have committed felony offenses. Delmar, NY: Author.
43.
National Institute of Mental Health. (1987). Towards a model for a comprehensive community-based mental health system. Washington, DC: Author.
44.
PeckL. W. (2003). Law enforcement interactions with persons with mental illness. TELEMASP Bulletin, 10, 1-10.
45.
PerezD. (2009). Applying evidence-based practices to community corrections supervision: An evaluation of residential substance abuse treatment for high-risk probationers. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 25, 442-458.
46.
PorporinoF.MotiukL. (1995). The prison careers of mentally disordered offenders. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 18, 29-44.
47.
RedlichA.SteadmanH.MonahanJ.RobbinsP.PetrilaJ. (2006). Patterns of practice in mental health courts: A national survey. Law and Human Behavior, 30, 347-362.
48.
RedlichA.SteadmanH.PetrilaJ.MonahanJ.GriffinP. (2005). The second generation of mental health courts. Psychology, Public Policy and Law, 11, 527-538.
SchneiderR. (2010). Mental health courts and diversion programs: A global survey. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 33, 201-206.
51.
ShaferM.ArthurB.FranczakM. (2004). An analysis of post-booking jail diversion programming for persons with co-occurring disorders. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 22, 771-785.
52.
SirotichF. (2009). The criminal justice outcomes of jail diversion programs for persons with mental illness: A review of the evidence. Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law, 37, 461-472.
53.
SkeemJ.BibeauL. (2008). How does violence potential relate to crisis intervention team responses to emergencies?Psychiatric Services, 59, 201-204.
54.
SkeemJ.Emke-FrancisP.Eno LoudenJ. (2006). Probation, mental health, and mandated treatment: A national survey. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 33, 158-184.
55.
SkeemJ.EncandelaJ.Eno LoudenJ. (2003). Perspectives on probation and mandated mental health treatment in specialized and traditional probation departments. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 21, 429-458.
56.
SkeemJ.Eno LoudenJ. (2006). Toward evidence-based practice for probationers and parolees mandated to mental health treatment. Psychiatric Services, 57, 333-342.
57.
SkeemJ.Eno LoudenJ.ManchakS.VidalS.HaddadE. (2009). Social networks and social control of probationers with co-occurring mental and substance abuse problems. Law and Human Behavior, 33, 122-135.
58.
SmithR.JenningsJ.CiminoA. (2010). Forensic continuum of care with ACT for persons recovering from co-occurring disabilities: Long-term outcome. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 33, 207-218.
59.
SolomonP.DraineJ. (1995a). Jail recidivism in a forensic case management program. Health & Social Work, 20, 167-173.
60.
SolomonP.DraineJ. (1995b). One-year outcomes of a randomized trial of case management with seriously mentally ill clients leaving jail. Evaluation Review, 19, 256-273.
61.
SolomonP.DraineJ.MarcusS. (2002). Predicting incarceration of clients of a psychiatric probation and parole service. Psychiatric Services, 53, 50-56.
62.
SteadmanH.DeaneM.BorumR.MorrisseyJ. (2000). Comparing outcomes of major models of police responses to mental health emergencies. Psychiatric Services, 51, 645-649.
63.
SteadmanH.NaplesM. (2005). Assessing the effectiveness of jail diversion programs for persons with serious mental illness and co-occurring substance use disorders. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 23, 163-170.
64.
SteadmanH.RedlichA.CallahanL.RobbinsP.VesselinovR. (2011). Effect of mental health courts on arrests and jail days. Archives of General Psychiatry, 68, 167-172.
65.
SteadmanH.RedlichA.GriffinP.PetrilaJ.MonahanJ. (2005). From referral to disposition: Case processing in seven mental health courts. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, 23, 215-226.
66.
StraussG.GlennM.ReddiT.AfaqI.PodolskavaA.RybakovaT.. . . El-MallakhR. (2005). Psychiatric disposition of patients brought in by crisis intervention team police officers. Community Mental Health Journal, 41, 223-230.
67.
SwanerR. (2010). Community perceptions of Red Hook, Brooklyn: Views of quality of life, safety, and services. New York, NY: Center for Court Innovation.
68.
TellerJ.MunetzM.GilK.RitterC. (2006). Crisis intervention team training for police officers responding to mental disturbance calls. Psychiatric Services, 57, 232-237.
69.
Thresholds State, County Collaborative Jail Linkage Project Chicago. (2001). Gold award: Helping mentally ill people break the cycle of jail and homelessness. Psychiatric Services, 52, 1380-1382.
70.
TyuseS. W. (2005). The effectiveness of a jail diversion program in linking participants to federal entitlements and stable housing. Californian Journal of Health Promotion, 3, 84-98.
71.
US General Accounting Office (1997). Drug courts: Overview of growth, characteristics, and results. Washington, DC: Author.
72.
VenturaL.CasselC.JacobyJ.HzuangB. (1998). Case management and recidivism of mentally ill persons released from jail. Psychiatry Services, 49, 1330-1337.
73.
WatsonA.OttatiV.MorabitoM.DraineJ.KerrA.AngellB. (2010). Outcomes of police contacts with persons with mental illness: The impact of CIT. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 37, 302-317.
74.
WeismanR.LambertiJ.PriceN. (2004). Integrating criminal justice, community healthcare, and support services for adults with severe mental disorders. Psychiatric Quarterly, 75, 71-85.
75.
WilsonD.MitchellO.MackenzieD. (2006). A systematic review of drug court effects on recidivism. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 2, 459-487.
76.
WilsonD.TienG.EavesD. (1995). Increasing the community tenure of mentally disordered offenders: An assertive case management program. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 18, 61-69.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
