The Douglas County Drug Court: A Comparison of Recidivism Rates Between Drug Court Participants and Traditionally Adjudicated Drug Offenders

Over the years there have been large increases in the number of drug offenders arrested, prosecuted, and sentenced to prison. These increases have lead to an overload of the criminal justice system. This overload prompted states to develop new responses to substance use and drug-related crime. One such innovation is the drug treatment court, which combines accountability and treatment. The goal of these courts is to reduce recidivism and substance use among drug-involved criminal offenders. This study uses data from Douglas County (Nebraska) to compare recidivism rates for participants in the Douglas County Drug Court and traditionally adjudicated drug offenders. The overall objective was to determine if the Douglas County Drug Court was more effective at reducing recidivism rates as compared to traditionally adjudicated drug offenders. This study found that drug court participants who graduated or were active in the drug court had lower recidivism rates than traditionally adjudicated offenders

The Douglas County Drug Court: A Comparison of Recidivism Rates Between Drug Court Participants and Traditionally Adjudicated Drug Offenders

Over the years there have been large increases in the number of drug offenders arrested, prosecuted, and sentenced to prison. These increases have lead to an overload of the criminal justice system. This overload prompted states to develop new responses to substance use and drug-related crime. One such innovation is the drug treatment court, which combines accountability and treatment. The goal of these courts is to reduce recidivism and substance use among drug-involved criminal offenders. This study uses data from Douglas County (Nebraska) to compare recidivism rates for participants in the Douglas County Drug Court and traditionally adjudicated drug offenders. The overall objective was to determine if the Douglas County Drug Court was more effective at reducing recidivism rates as compared to traditionally adjudicated drug offenders. This study found that drug court participants who graduated or were active in the drug court had lower recidivism rates than traditionally adjudicated offenders

Effects of Individual Characteristics on Plea Negotiations Under Sentencing Guidelines

Research conducted on the decision points between arrest and sentencing is scarce. The current study attempts to fill this gap by focusing on plea negotiations, examining the effects of individual characteristics on plea bargaining decisions by using two dependent variables – a two-category dependent variable analyzing negotiated pleas vs. non-negotiated pleas and a three-category dependent variable analyzing negotiated pleas, non-negotiated pleas, and bench/jury trial convictions. The results from the multinomial logistic regression indicate that individual characteristics are predictors of negotiated guilty pleas compared to a trial conviction. Black offenders were more likely than white offenders to have their case go to trial rather than straight pleading or negotiating a guilty plea