New in the Library
Environmental Scan 2016
Posted: 2 weeks ago
(2017) “Beginning in the late 1990’s, the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) Information Center began scanning social, economic, and corrections issues to inform the development of programs and services offered by NIC. This report, now in its 11th edition, has continued to evolve into a popular tool that corrections practitioners also use to inform their work in jails, prisons, and community corrections. Because there are many issues beyond what is addressed in this environmental scan that will potentially influence corrections, this report is intended to give a broad overview of selected current and anticipated trends and not intended to be comprehensive.
"The method for selecting articles, reports, and other materials was based on a scan of popular magazines, newspapers, and websites as well as corrections-specific publications. As part of the ongoing work of the Information Center in supporting the work of corrections practitioners, staff regularly monitors reports and publications from state, national, and independent sources. The report is arranged starting with global and broader influences on corrections and moves to specific corrections issues. Each section of the report gives an overview of the topic followed by corrections-specific trends and developments in this area” (p. 3).
Sections of this report are: introduction; international developments; demographic and social trends; the workforce; technology; public opinion; the economy and government spending; criminal justice trends; corrections populations and trends; and mental health care in corrections.
New in the Library
Myths & Facts - Using Risk and Need Assessments to Enhance Outcomes and Reduce Disparities in the Criminal Justice System
Posted: 3 weeks ago
(2017) The Community Corrections Collaborative Network (CCCN) is a network comprised of the leading associations representing 90,000-plus probation, parole, pretrial, and treatment professionals around the country, including the American Probation and Parole Association (APPA), the Association of Paroling Authorities International (APAI), the Federal Probation and Pretrial Officers Association (FPPOA), the International Community Corrections Association (ICCA), the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP), the National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies (NAPSA), and the National Association of Probation Executives (NAPE).
This "Myths & Facts" package includes a one-page list of myths and facts along with a research-based supporting document to help dispel three specific myths regarding the use of risk and need assessments within the criminal justice system. A description and relevant research to dispel each myth is provided. Our network believes that risk and need assessments currently provide the most accurate, objective prediction of the risk to recidivate. While risk and need assessments do not predict with perfect accuracy, they guide practitioners in the field towards the most accurate and equitable decisions available for safely managing justice-involved individuals.
New in the Library
A Framework for Pretrial Justice: Essential Elements of an Effective Pretrial System and Agency
Posted: 8 weeks ago
(2017) This document highlights the commitment of the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) to define and support evidence-based practices that improve decision-making at the pretrial stage of our criminal justice system, enhancing the safety of America’s communities and fostering the fair administration of pretrial release and detention. With the release of A Framework for Pretrial Justice: Essential Elements of an Effective Pretrial System and Agency, NIC and its Pretrial Executive Network helps inform the discussion on bail reform and pretrial justice by presenting and defining the fundamentals of an effective pretrial system and the essential elements of a high functioning pretrial services agency. This publication presents and describes these essential elements—as well as the components of an evidence-based framework for improving pretrial outcomes nationwide.
Bail determination is one of the most important decisions in criminal justice. Courts that make evidence-based decisions set the following as goals: (1) Protecting community safety; (2) Ensuring a defendant’s return to court; (3) Basing release and detention decisions on an individual defendant’s risk and the community’s norms for liberty; [and] (4) Providing judicial officers with clear, legal options for appropriate pretrial release and detention decisions.
A Framework for Pretrial Justice: Essential Elements of an Effective Pretrial System and Agency should serve as a guide for jurisdictions interested in improving their current pretrial systems. By presenting a framework of evidence-based and best practices, NIC supports the equally important concepts of pretrial justice and enhanced public safety in all of America’s courts.
New in the Library
Leadership Annotated Bibliography
Posted: 9 weeks ago
(2017) This annotated bibliography provides current and useful information about leadership to corrections professionals. There are many different theories about leadership. A leader needs to be aware of them because different styles of leadership may be needed for differing situations. In the end, results of good leadership will include high morale, employee retention, and sustainable success over the long run. This bibliography touches on a few of the main theories, and looks at the impact of leadership on various groups and succession planning. Topics covered are: general; various leadership types—adaptive leadership, authentic leadership, change leadership, emotional intelligence, ethical leadership, leader-member exchange (LMX), servant leadership, and virtuous leadership; leading generations; women and leadership; leadership and diversity; leadership development; leadership in corrections; and succession planning.
New in the Library
Incarceration Rates and Traits of Sexual Minorities in the United States: National Inmate Survey, 2011–2012
Posted: 10 weeks ago
(2017) This report examines the "characteristics of sexual minority US inmates … Sexual minorities (those who self-identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual or report a same-sex sexual experience before arrival at the facility) were disproportionately incarcerated: 9.3% of men in prison, 6.2% of men in jail, 42.1% of women in prison, and 35.7% of women in jail were sexual minorities. The incarceration rate of self-identified lesbian, gay, or bisexual persons was 1882 per 100 000, more than 3 times that of the US adult population. Compared with straight inmates, sexual minorities were more likely to have been sexually victimized as children, to have been sexually victimized while incarcerated, to have experienced solitary confinement and other sanctions, and to report current psychological distress …There is disproportionate incarceration, mistreatment, harsh punishment, and sexual victimization of sexual minority inmates, which calls for special public policy and health intervention" (p. 234).
American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy (AJHP) v. 107 n. 2, p. 234-240.
New in the Library
Shackled to Debt: Criminal Justice Financial Obligations and the Barriers to Re-Entry They Create
Posted: 14 weeks ago
(2017) The "authors discuss the long-term and unintended consequences of criminal justice financial obligations (CJFOs): fines, forfeiture of property, court fees, supervision fees, and restitution." [They] "describe trends in the assessment of CJFOs, discuss the historical context within which these trends have unfolded, and reflect on their unintended (but perhaps easily foreseen) consequences. We then treat restitution separately, given the distinct function (in theory at least) that restitution serves. We also raise serious concerns about how restitution tends to be implemented and who benefits from this particular obligation. We end by considering alternative models for the effective and fair deployment of fines, fees and restitution in the criminal justice context" (p. 2).
New in the Library
Building Trust and Legitimacy Within Community Corrections
Posted: 17 weeks ago
(2016) “What the authors of this report have done is exemplify the importance of community corrections. Probation has the power to keep individuals in their community, working toward positive change and better outcomes for themselves, their families, and their communities.” - Jim Cosby, Past Director, National Institute of Corrections
"This paper will discuss the need for a new model for community corrections that can improve public safety while recognizing that people on probation and parole are members of the communities in which they live and are supervised" (p. 3). Six general principles which provide the foundation for this new model of community corrections are described.
New in the Library
Aiming to Reduce Time-In-Cell: Reports from Correctional Systems on the Numbers of Prisoners in Restricted Housing and on the Potential of Policy Changes to Bring About Reforms
Posted: 18 weeks ago
(2016) This report "provides the only current, comprehensive data on the use of restricted housing, in which individuals are held in their cells for 22 hours or more each day, and for 15 continuous days or more at a time. The Report also documents efforts across the country to reduce the number of people in restricted housing and to reform the conditions in which isolated prisoners are held in order to improve safety for prisoners, staff, and communities at large" (p. 1).