Drug Court Policies, Practices, and Offenders' Program Experiences

Abstract

The Urban Institute, the Center for Court Innovation, and RTI International conducted NIJ's Multi-Site Adult Drug Court Evaluation. This presentation uses data collected for MADCE drug court participants to describe key court policies, practices, and dynamics (e.g., treatment, leverage, judicial supervision, judicial interaction, case management, drug testing, sanctions, rewards, etc.). It addresses: 1) how policies, practices, and courtroom experiences vary across drug court programs; 2) which policies, practices, and courtroom experiences make drug courts more or less effective; 3) whether courtroom experiences mediate drug court success; and 4) whether the effects of specific policies and practices vary by offender subgroup.

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Purpose of the Presentation

• Research Partnership: The Urban Institute, Center for Court Innovation, & Research Triangle Institute, with funding from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
• Describe the policies and practices of drug courts with the highest performance based on participants outcomes.
• Presentation topics:
  • Overview of MADCE
• Overview of Analytic Methods
• Present Overall Court Rankings by Types of People
• Examine Policies and Practices of Courts within the Context of the Court Rankings

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