NCJ Number
196272
Journal
Alaska Law Review Volume: 19 Issue: 1 Dated: June 2002 Pages: 1-55
Date Published
June 2002
Length
55 pages
Annotation
This article presents a description of the therapeutic justice offerings in the Alaska State Courts including the foundations of the program and information of current and planned therapeutic justice offerings.
Abstract
The authors provide an overview of the therapeutic justice options presented in the Alaskan State Courts. For the purposes of the article, therapeutic justice refers to court administration designed to address underlying causes of criminal behavior in order to produce a reduction in recidivism. Underlying causes addressed include mental health needs and substance abuse issues. Specialized courts have been developed to provide offenders with appropriate root cause redress services. These courts include drug court, wellness court and mental health court. Constitutional implications of the use of these programs, for example, due process and confidentiality issues are reviewed. The information reviewed by the authors indicates that there are recidivism reduction effects from a therapeutic justice approach. Further research is suggested to verify these results over a long term application. 292 notes