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Published in: Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research 3/2015

01-05-2015 | Original Article

Mental Health Court Outcomes by Offense Type at Admission

Authors: Bradley Ray, Sheryl Pimlott Kubiak, Erin B. Comartin, Elizabeth Tillander

Published in: Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research | Issue 3/2015

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Abstract

Using a statewide database of mental health court (MHC) defendants, this study examines criminal justice outcomes by target arrest offense type. Findings suggest that defendants with a felony are less likely to complete MHC but those who do are at no greater risk of recidivism post-exit than those with a misdemeanor. In terms of jail days, both completers and noncompleters with a felony had reductions in jail days; however, misdemeanor defendants, especially those who did not complete MHC, had increases. We discuss why MHC supervision may sometimes have a negative effect and offer recommendations on how courts might modify supervision.
Footnotes
1
Moore and Hiday (2006) used charge type to create a severity score, while McNiel and Binder (2007) and Steadman et al. (2011) used it in propensity score matching. However, these studies did not report directly on target arrest charge type and MHC outcomes.
 
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Metadata
Title
Mental Health Court Outcomes by Offense Type at Admission
Authors
Bradley Ray
Sheryl Pimlott Kubiak
Erin B. Comartin
Elizabeth Tillander
Publication date
01-05-2015
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research / Issue 3/2015
Print ISSN: 0894-587X
Electronic ISSN: 1573-3289
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-014-0572-2

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