NCJ Number
241913
Date Published
December 2010
Length
31 pages
Annotation
This report examines the prevalence of mentally ill offenders in the Texas juvenile justice system in fiscal year (FY) 2008, the number of juveniles served, and types of services provided in the Special Needs Diversionary Program (SNDP), which was created in 2001 to provide mental health treatment and specialized supervision.
Abstract
In FY 2008, an estimated 33 percent of juveniles under supervision were assessed as mentally ill. Of those juveniles, only 37 percent received mental health services in FY 2008. In FY 2010, SNDP served 1,400 juveniles with 19 programs that encompassed 21 departments and 26 Texas counties. The most common diagnoses for SNDP participants in FY 2010 was attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and conduct disorder; 16 percent had a dual diagnosis that involved a mental disorder and substance abuse. Seventy-three percent of juveniles discharged from SNDP in FY 2010 successfully completed the program, and 76 percent of those starting in FY 2009 successfully completed the program. Twenty-nine percent of those starting SNDP in FY 2009 were sent to the Texas Youth Commission (TYC) within 1 year; and 17 percent of those starting SNDP were sent to residential placement within 1 year. Forty-two percent of those starting SNDP in FY 2009 reoffended within 1 year; 36 percent of those starting SNDP in FY 2009 and who successfully completed the program reoffended within 1 year. Juveniles who received cognitive behavior therapy, group therapy, psychological services, or individual therapy had much lower reoffending rates (28 percent - 34 percent) than other participants. Also, juveniles who received vocational or education/mentor services had much lower re-offense rates than other juveniles. 10 figures and 26 tables