Impact findings indicate that the portion of court referrals that did not complete the batterer program dramatically decreased from one-half (52 percent) to one-third (35 percent). On the other hand, two-thirds of the program referrals completed the 16 sessions required in 1997. The compliance was a result of the “no-show” rate being reduced from 36 percent in 1994 to 6 percent in 1997. Overall, the findings showed a substantial decrease in noncompliance following the implementation of mandated court review of cases in the Pittsburgh Domestic Violence Court. The review occurs before the magistrate 30 days after program referral. Mandated court review was implemented in the Pittsburgh Domestic Violence Court in January 1995 in an effort to increase the compliance to batterer program referral. This study attempted to determine the impact of mandated court review on compliance to batterer program referral. Compliance in the form of appearing for program intake and completing the required number of group sessions has been a major concern in the field. The study sample consisted of 300 men appearing in the Pittsburgh Domestic Violence Court who were administered a background questionnaire to identify demographics and influential behavior represented in past alcohol or psychological treatment or criminal arrest. The study also included 900 men appearing at the Domestic Abuse Counseling Center (DACC) for program intake. They were also administered a similar questionnaire. The study attempted to determine if mandated court review increased compliance to batterer program referral and if that increased compliance was applicable to the present court and attributable to other factors. References, tables, and appendixes I and II
Impact of Mandatory Court Review on Batterer Program Compliance: An Evaluating of the Pittsburgh Municipal Courts and Domestic Abuse Counseling Center (DACC), Final Report
NCJ Number
214567
Date Published
May 1997
Length
43 pages
Annotation
This report presents the findings from a study conducted to assess the impact of court-mandated review of domestic violence cases on compliance to batterer program referral and mandated in the Pittsburgh Domestic Violence Court.
Abstract