Williamsburg, Va. (March 18, 2010) — The National Center for State Courts, The National Judicial College, and the Crime and Justice Institute have produced a free model curriculum designed to help trial judges develop sentencing practices that reduce the risk of a person being arrested repeatedly for criminal behavior. The creation of the five-unit, six-hour program titled “Evidence-Based Sentencing to Improve Public Safety and Reduce Recidivism” was funded by the Public Safety Performance Project of the Pew Center on the States and the State Justice Institute.
According to a 2009 report (“Arming the Courts with Research: 10 Evidence-Based Sentencing Initiatives to Control Crime and Reduce Costs”) by the National Center and the Pew Center on the States, recidivism rates among felony defendants are at unprecedented levels — nearly 60 percent of defendants have been previously convicted and more than 40 percent of those on probation fail to complete probation successfully. These high recidivism rates not only increase state crime rates but also contribute to the escalating cost of state corrections. The report also noted that proven methods — including evidence-based sentencing — exist to change the behavior of felony offenders who are placed on probation, fined, or jailed.
The new model curriculum is designed to help judges use evidence-based sentencing strategies to decrease the number of repeat offenders and increase safety in their communities. Some examples of evidence-based sentencing strategies include:
• using validated offender-risk and needs-assessment tools;• focusing corrections resources on medium- and high-risk offenders rather than low-risk offenders who aren’t likely to reoffend;• targeting services to offender characteristics that have been proven to best predict future criminality;• using swift, certain, and graduated sanctions for probation violations. The course materials, which include a 63-page faculty handbook and corresponding PowerPoint presentation and handouts, are available online at www.ncsconline.org/csi/education.html. The materials can be viewed, printed, or downloaded either in their entirety or by unit, as needed.
The course was designed to be presented by a judicial officer paired with a probation services professional, and the faculty handbook provides suggestions on faculty selection as well as how to modify the curriculum to meet the needs of the audience, accommodate the style of the presenters, and adjust to fit in the amount of time allotted for the session.
The National Center’s Research Division and Institute for Court Management currently are developing an online version of the course, which will contain videos featuring retired California Superior Court Judge and NCSC president emeritus Roger K. Warren and Dr. Geraldine Nagy, director of the Travis County, Texas, Community Supervision and Corrections Departments.
The National Center for State Courts, headquartered in Williamsburg, Va., is a nonprofit court reform organization dedicated to improving the administration of justice by providing leadership and service to the state courts. Founded in 1971 by the Conference of Chief Justices and Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger, NCSC provides education, training, technology, management, and research services to the nation’s state courts.
National Center for State Courts, 300 Newport Avenue, Williamsburg, VA 23185-4147