NCJ Number
237701
Date Published
2011
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This paper from the St. Louis Alliance for Reentry addresses the issue of offender reentry and substance abuse in the State of Missouri.
Abstract
This white paper presents characteristics on offender reentry and substance abuse. Research has found that the majority of offenders in the United States have issues related to substance abuse, with 70 percent of prisoners in State and local prisons dealing with substance abuse compared to 9 percent of the general population. In Missouri, substance abuse screening indicates that 82 percent of offenders have a moderate to severe substance abuse problem. It has also been found that offenders with substance abuse problems suffer from higher rates of recidivism, with 83 percent of offenders released on parole having documented substance abuse issues. In addition, offenders with substance problems face significant mental health challenges and have unusually high death rates, with offenders released with substance abuse issues being 13 times more likely to die than people in the general population. Missouri has instituted promising practices to improve access to services for offenders with substance abuse issues. Some of these practices include having offenders with substance abuse issues being assigned to Department of Corrections' treatment programs by the courts and the parole board, having probationers who fail treatment in the community ordered to a prison-based treatment center, and screening non-court mandated offenders for a history of substance dependence. Descriptions of the various treatment programs in Missouri are presented in this paper. 9 references