The Impact of an Indiana (United States) Drug Court on Criminal Recidivism

  • John R. Gallagher Indiana University, School of Social Work and Oaklawn Psychiatric Center, Addictions Services, South Bend, Indiana, USA
  • Eric Ivory Indiana Drug Court Coordinator, South Bend, Indiana
  • Jesse Carlton St. Joseph County, Indiana Adult Chief Probation Officer, South Bend, Indiana, USA
  • Hon. Jane Woodward Miller St. Joseph County, Indiana Drug Court Judge, South Bend, Indiana, USA
Keywords: Drug court, logistic regression, criminal recidivism, substance use disorders, probation

Abstract

This study evaluated a drug court located in a metropolitan area of Indiana (United States), focusing specifically on identifying variables that predicted recidivism among drug court participants and comparing criminal recidivism patterns among drug court and probation participants. Drug court participants were most likely to recidivate if they were younger, had a violation within the first 30 days of the program, had a previous criminal record, and were terminated unsuccessfully from the program. Furthermore, drug court participants were less likely to recidivate than probationers who had similar offense and demographic characteristics. Implications for drug court practice, policy advocacy, and future research are discussed.

Author Biographies

John R. Gallagher, Indiana University, School of Social Work and Oaklawn Psychiatric Center, Addictions Services, South Bend, Indiana, USA
Ph.D., Assistant Professor
Eric Ivory, Indiana Drug Court Coordinator, South Bend, Indiana
BS, St. Joseph County, Indiana Drug Court Coordinator, South Bend, Indiana, USA
Jesse Carlton, St. Joseph County, Indiana Adult Chief Probation Officer, South Bend, Indiana, USA
BS
Published
2014-07-15
Issue
Vol 15 No 2 (2014): Fall 2014
Section
Articles
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