In recognition of Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) recently published a literature review on national dating violence research in adolescent relationships. Teen dating violence is a complex issue that can include varying layers of abusive behavior. In the past, dating violence research was limited to college-age or young adult victims. However, in more recent years, there has been a steady increase in this research with greater focus on adolescents.
Supported by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center recently published a brief that highlights ways in which clinicians can support mental health and criminal justice collaborations using the Sequential Intercept Model (SIM). According to Policy Research Associates, the SIM identifies six intercepts of the criminal justice system including, community services, law enforcement, initial detention or initial court hearings, jails or courts, reentry, and community supervisions.
Supported by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center recently published an article describing the significance of increasing public safety answering point (PSAP) personnel preparedness for crisis team expansions. Crisis teams, such as co-responder teams, homeless outreach teams, mobile crisis units, and opioid response teams, can help jurisdictions better respond to community needs. For PSAP personnel, matching the most appropriate group to the needs of the caller can be critical for the safest outcome.
This month, the National Institute of Justice published a report based on a review and rating by CrimeSolutions of multiple meta-analyses. Substance use disorders, which include substance dependence and abuse, have a tremendous impact on individuals, families, and communities. For patients, trauma-informed care offers the opportunity to engage more fully in their health care, develop a trusting relationship with their provider, and improve long-term health outcomes.
This month, the National Institute of Justice issued an evaluation of a limited study on ten state-based task forces using the Enhanced Collaborative Model (ECM) to Combat Human Trafficking launched in 2010. Due to its complex nature, human trafficking crimes are difficult to detect thereby creating significant barriers for disruption. Many jurisdictions also struggle to identify crimes for both sex and labor trafficking because of varied understandings or limited knowledge of the root causes.
The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) recently developed a comprehensive fact sheet on BJA grant funding resources that address hate crimes, crimes that impact civil rights, and other bias-motivated and hate incidents. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is committed to advancing work that promotes civil rights, increasing access to justice, supporting crime victims, protecting the public from crime and evolving threats, and building trust between law enforcement and the community.
Last month, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) released a 2020 yearend report detailing data findings from the BJS Annual Probation Survey, Annual Parole Survey, and Federal Justice Statistics Program. During 2020, the number of people on probation decreased from 3,330,200 to 3,053,700 (down 8.3%), the largest annual decline since the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) began the probation collection in 1980. Whereas the number of adults on parole increased 1.3% during 2020, from 851,000 on January 1, 2020 to 862,100 at yearend.
The National Institute of Justice recently released a research brief authored by Katherine Scafide, Ph.D. and other colleagues investigating alternate and more suitable light sources to traditional options for bruise detection in violent crime cases such as domestic violence and sexual assault. Inaccurate documentation of injuries can be detrimental to the victim’s legal case against their attacker as well as to the victim’s medical treatment.
Last month, the National Institute of Justice published a report of the First Step Act (FSA) of 2018 that mandates the development, implementation, and use of the Prisoner Assessment Tool Targeting Estimated Risk and Needs (PATTERN) of each person in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons. As a risk and needs assessment system, section 3634 in Title I of the FSA requires the U.S. Department of Justice to annually review, validate, and publicly release PATTERN.
This month, the Bureau of Justice Assistance released a brief on the Law Enforcement-Mental Health Learning Site program developed by the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center that offers national resources to law enforcement and behavioral health agencies seeking to tailor response models and implementation strategies to their individual community’s needs.