RD211 - "Continuing a Balanced Approach to Public Safety through the Healing Environment" -- Community Corrections Status Report - July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015


Executive Summary:
This is a status report on the Statewide Community Based Corrections System for State Responsible Offenders as required by the 2015 Appropriations Act, Chapter 665, Item 381A.

In the past year we have continued to transform the agency towards the goal of creating a healing, rewarding and motivating high performance learning organization. The Department of Corrections (DOC) has achieved significant accomplishments over the past year:

• DOC’s recidivism is 22.8%, ranking it the second lowest in the country among the 47 other states that measure recidivism similarly.

• DOC has improved the safety of its probation and parole districts offices through a security assessment review and has added metal detectors and increased camera coverage.

• DOC has conducted active threat training and assessments in 41 of 43 probation and parole districts to evaluate current response concepts, plans and capabilities for a response to an active threat event including training to prepare staff for response to a potential event.

• DOC has reduced the number of homeless releases from prison and increased community housing placements for offenders with health care needs through increased collaboration with local social services agencies, the Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services, Department of Medical Assistance, local community services boards, local non-profit organizations, nursing homes and housing providers.

• DOC’s sex offender containment model of probation supervision has operated effectively and provided intensive GPS supervision, polygraph examinations and treatment services to sex offenders, including supervision of Sexually Violent Predator conditional release cases from the Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation on behalf of the Department of Behavioral Health and Disability Services.

• DOC assisted the Virginia State Police in designing updated brochures regarding Sex Offender Registration requirements and ensured distribution to sex offenders on probation supervision.

• DOC has expanded the use of evidence-based interventions with medium to high risk probation cases by training and coaching staff on the effective use of core correctional practices using the EPICS II research-based model, with over half of the state probation and parole officers trained thus far.

• DOC has partnered with George Mason University’s Center for Advancing Correctional Excellence and implemented the SOARING project in 3 pilot probation and parole districts that uses eLearning and supervisor observation and coaching to increase probation officer effectiveness in using risk and needs assessment, case planning and interactions with offenders to motivate change, and appropriate use of authority.

• DOC has implemented “Learning Teams” in all community corrections units whereby staff meet together in small groups twice per month and utilize dialogue practices to resolve issues, advance team work, create improved operations and improve their intervention skills with offenders.

• DOC developed and is currently working to implement an extensive strategic plan to apply evidence-based practices in detention and diversion centers and improve effectiveness.

• DOC continues to prepare incarcerated offenders for community reentry and probation supervision by providing 12 months of intensive reentry programing immediately before release that includes research-based cognitive programming, substance abuse treatment, workforce development, family reunification seminars, and reentry seminars.

• Offenders discharging prison are provided with brief cognitive-behavioral peer support groups to follow up prison treatment and provide guidance immediately upon reentry.

• DOC continued to operate the Federal Fidelity Bonding Program for all criminal justice offenders in Virginia to assist with employability.

• DOC probation and parole chiefs actively participated as co-conveners of Local Reentry Councils in most localities in Virginia in partnership with the Virginia Department of Social Services.

In addition to sizable accomplishments many challenges remain. Probation and parole districts continue to be confronted with large workloads, limiting the time and services that can be provided to offenders on supervision. Too many offenders still enter the community from prison without housing, particularly sex offenders and violent offenders. There is a critical need for housing for a small but impactful number of releasing offenders who need nursing home or geriatric care. Many offenders are released to state probation supervision from local jails without receiving any reentry preparation, medication or housing planning. Many community service boards do not provide mental health treatment to certain types of offenders, such as those convicted of sex offenses or murders, contributing to a higher public risk and recidivism rate for offenders with mental health needs. Although criminal thinking is identified as the primary driver to recidivism and research strongly supports cognitive-behavioral programs as an effective intervention, DOC is not funded to provide programming for the over 30,000 probation offenders with this need.

Despite these challenges we are steadfast in our overall mission to create lasting public safety by preparing offenders to reintegrate into law-abiding lives after the course of community correctional supervision is completed. We continue to see significant benefits from our organizational development initiatives to create a learning organization with the culture to sustain both staff and offender growth and positive change. We will continue to:

• Identify offenders' risks and needs and give priority to those offenders who pose the greatest risk to public safety

• Develop and update case plans that address identified risks and needs

• Utilize evidence-based services to respond to individual needs and reduce the risk of recidivism as resources allow

• Quickly and appropriately respond to compliance and non-compliance with proportionate incentives and sanctions

As we move forward, DOC will continue to evaluate our supervision practices and services and seek ways to continually improve our operations to achieve our goal of long-term public safety.

Harold W. Clarke
Director