Community Mediation Maryland: Reentry Mediation In-Depth Recidivism Analysis

• NCJ Number: 306736
• Author(s): Shawn M. Flower
• Date Published: 2014
• Length: 55 pages
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation

Annotation

This report describes a study aimed at analyzing the Community Mediation of Maryland Reentry Mediation program’s effectiveness at reducing recidivism as measured by arrest, conviction, incarceration sentences, and return to Department of Corrections for a violation or new arrest.

Abstract

This document reports on a study that had the goal of determining the effectiveness  and impact of the Community Mediation of Maryland (CMM) Reentry Mediation program to reduce recidivism. The report addresses key limitations detailed in a prior report from April 2013. The authors examined the impact of mediation by comparing the treatment group matched to each of the two comparison groups to discover whether there were significant differences between the groups. Key findings of the study indicated that participation in reentry mediation has a significant impact on all recidivism outcomes measured in this project, after controlling for key factors that might otherwise have explained the findings, specifically: the overall probability of re-arrest was reduced by 13 percent with mediation; with each additional mediation session, the probability of conviction was reduced by nine percent; the probability of being sentenced to a period of incarceration of one day or more was reduced by seven percent with each additional mediation session; and among those returned to prison by the Department of Corrections, those who received mediation were 12 percent less likely than those who did not. The authors emphasize that the majority of the mediation participants had only one, two-hour session but that mediation is an innovative tool that addresses a critical reentry factor and would be beneficial if it were incorporated into a comprehensive and integrated reentry strategy.