Research
Explore our library of research products including academic publications, reports on research and outcomes, policy briefs, videos of webinars, animations, and more. Research products are organized by initiative and/or by type, with the most recent items at the top of the list. Search by topic with the search bar at the top of the page.
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June 2021Decarceration as a Strategy to Mitigate the Spread of COVID-19This CoP brings together experts to discuss the need to reduce populations to mitigate COVID-19 in jail settings and practical strategies that jails can use to implement decarceration as a strategy. Beth Huebner, Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, an expert in correctional reform, joins Director Douglas Burris and Miranda Gibson. Together they discuss their successful efforts to use a systematic case review process to reduce the jail population in the St. Louis County Department of Justice Services to assist mitigating the spread of COVID-19 among staff and detainees. The May event also provides an opportunity to continue engaging in dialogue around vaccines, including but not limited to strategies to consider when offering the vaccine to those who are justice-involved.OtherVideo -
June 2021Implementation of a Syringe Services Program and Law Enforcement BarriersAmple research has shown the positive benefits of syringe services programs in reducing the transmission of infectious disease, improving treatment outcomes for those with substance use disorder, and saving money in the community. Marion County, Indiana introduced its first syringe services program in April 2019 to address rising rates of Hepatitis C in the community. Despite the implementation of the syringe services program, syringe possession is a felony in Indiana, placing the program at the intersection of public health and criminal legal system. Researchers from Wayne State University’s Center for Behavioral Health and Justice have conducted quantitative and qualitative data collection to learn more about the impact of a felony possession law on the success of the syringe services program and the wellbeing of the community as a whole, with results highlighting the need to decriminalize syringe possession in Indiana.Harm reductionVideo
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May 2021Safety and Health Integration in the Enforcement of Laws on Drugs (SHIELD): Occupational Safety and Harm Reduction Training for Police, Results of a pre-post training survey of police officer participantsThis report includes the pre-post training survey results of two cohorts of police officers who participated in virtual SHIELD training in Indiana. Results show significant changes in knowledge and attitudes toward medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD), syringe related arrests, and naloxone, among other topics.OtherReport
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May 2021Decarceration as a strategy to mitigate the spread of COVID-19This Community of Practice (CoP) brings together experts to discuss the need to reduce populations to mitigate COVID-19 in jail settings and practical strategies that jails can use to implement decarceration as a strategy. Beth Huebner, Professor of Criminal Justice at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and an expert in correctional reform, joins Director Douglas Burris and Miranda Gibson. Together, they discuss their successful efforts to use a systematic case review process to reduce the jail population in the St. Louis County Department of Justice Services to assist mitigating the spread of COVID-19 among staff and detainees. The May event also provided an opportunity to continue engaging in dialogue around vaccines, including but not limited to strategies to consider when offering the vaccine to those who are justice-involved.DiversionVideo
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May 2021Assessing county-level behavioral health and justice systems with the SIMPLE scorecardThis webinar describes the Sequential Intercept Model Practices, Leadership, and Expertise (SIMPLE) Scorecard’s development, significant findings and potential to direct county-level strategic planning to improve behavioral health and justice systems. The Sequential Intercept Model has been widely used to identify and conceptualize interventions for people with serious mental illness in the criminal legal system. Researchers at Wayne State University School of Social Work’s Center for Behavioral Health and Justice designed the SIMPLE scorecard to assess behavioral health and legal policies/practices and to compare county systems over time. Improvements in pre-booking SIMPLE score points showed a reduction in the prevalence of serious mental illness among those booking into county jails.DiversionVideo
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May 2021Factors of recidivism among individuals with co-occurring conditions in rural mental health jail interventionsThis exploratory study aims to examine factors of recidivism among adults in rural jails. Administrative data sources were utilized to assess post-year recidivism among 191 individuals with co-occurring disorders (COD) who participated in a jail-based intervention. Results indicate that a greater number of previous jail bookings and not receiving continuity of care were the strongest associations of overall recidivism, and a greater number of previous jail bookings was associated with multiple recidivism events. The protective effect of receiving continuity of care was diminished in reducing recidivism 4- to 12-months following jail release. Implications of these findings are discussed.ReentryPublication
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May 2021Sequential Intercept Model Practices, Leadership and Expertise (SIMPLE) ScorecardThe Center for Behavioral Health and Justice created the SIMPLE (Sequential Intercept Model Practices Leadership, and Expertise) Scorecard to assess county-level behavioral health and justice collaborations. The scorecard could be used as an evidence-based strategic planning tool to drive behavioral health and criminal legal system change at a county level. Fifteen counties across Michigan were analyzed on a 36-point scale to measure best, promising, and evidence-based practices implemented by each county across each intercept of the sequential intercept model, their leadership and their expertise.DiversionScorecard
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May 2021Assessing county-level behavioral health and justice systems with the SIMPLE scorecardThis webinar will describe the Sequential Intercept Model Practices, Leadership, and Expertise (SIMPLE) Scorecard’s development, significant findings, and potential to direct county-level strategic planning to improve behavioral health and justice systems.DiversionVideo
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April 2021COVID-19 communications, preparedness and mitigation: Addressing the infodemic and pandemicThis Community of Practice (CoP) brought diverse champions to the table to provide an overview of effective public health communication and educational strategies across multiple populations: criminal-legal staff, those justice-involved and the community. The event also provided an opportunity to continue engaging in dialogue around the topics discussed and vaccines, including but not limited to strategies to consider when offering the vaccine to those who are justice-involved.DiversionVideo
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April 2021Transition planning from jail; treatment engagement, continuity of care and rearrestThis exploratory study assesses the association of a jail-based mental health (MH) transition planning program with continuity of care (CoC), behavioral health treatment, engagement and rearrest. Utilization of MH treatment significantly increased after the program, particularly stabilizing services such as case management. Findings show that individuals who were engaged with the program at a high level had 10.7 times greater odds of receiving CoC compared to those who engaged at a low or medium level and 15.1 times more likely to engage in treatment post-reentry. Additionally, time to first rearrest after release was delayed for those who received CoC.ReentryPublication
