Treatment Alternatives and Diversion (TAD) Program: Advancing Effective Diversion in Wisconsin 2007-2010 Evaluation Report

• NCJ Number: 237576
• Author(s): Kit R. Van Stelle; Janae Goodrich; Jason Paltzer
• Date Published: December 2011
• Length: 150 pages
• Corporate Author: Wisconsin Dept of Corrections; Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance; University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute; Wisconsin Dept of Health Services
• Sale Source: University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: See NCJ-237577 for the Executive Summary

Annotation

This report presents an overview of the features and effectiveness of Wisconsin's Treatment Alternatives and Diversion (TAD) program, which is a diversion program that provides alternatives to prosecution and incarceration for offenders who abuse alcohol or other drugs, and recommendations are offered for improving the TAD Program.

Abstract

The current evaluation found that the TAD program effectively diverts nonviolent offenders with substance abuse treatment needs from incarceration and reduces criminal justice system costs. TAD has a graduation rate of 64 percent, which consists of 66 percent graduation for TAD diversion projects and 55 percent for TAD treatment courts. Seventy-six percent of TAD participants are not convicted of a new crime after program participation. Eleven percent of TAD graduates were not convicted of a new crime after program participation; 11 percent of TAD graduates were convicted of a new offense within 1 year compared to 23 percent of those who were terminated from TAD projects. Offenders who completed TAD were nine times less likely to be admitted to State prison after program participation than those who did not complete TAD projects. Based on both the evaluation results and current evidence-based practices, the TAD Advisory Committee developed recommendations for improving TAD. One recommendation is that existing State laws be modified to allow projects to enroll persons with a prior charge/conviction that would currently exclude them from program eligibility, so long as appropriate authorities determine that the offender is otherwise suited to the program. Also, legislation should be enacted to expand the current limited scope of standards to include criminal justice evidence-based principles for correctional populations. Other recommendations pertain to quality assurance, State-level coordination and training, and evaluation and accountability. 42 tables, 12 figures, 64 references, and appended 2006 TAD program funding announcement, a description of the evaluation methodology, the questionnaire used in the survey of TAD evidence-based practices, cost-benefit analyses, the 2005 WI Act 25 Legislation, and a description of participants by TAD project site