Criminogenic Risk Assessment of Individuals with Severe Mental Illness in a Mental Health Court

• In Event: 573 - Section on Sociology of Mental Health Paper Session. Law, Crime and Mental Illness

Abstract

Objective: Two primary goals of mental health courts are to engage individuals with severe mental illness who are involved in the criminal justice system with clinical mental health services and to prevent future involvement with the criminal justice system. An important factor in helping to achieve both goals is to identify participants’ level of criminogenic risk/needs and their clinical needs. This study seeks to better understand how criminogenic risk affects outcomes in a mental health court. Specifically, we determine if high criminogenic risk, in general and in specific dynamic areas, is associated with failure to complete a mental health court program. Methods: We used a criminogenic risk assessment, the Level of Services Inventory-Revised (LSI-R), to predict termination from a mental health court. Our subjects are voluntary participants of a municipal mental health court who completed the LSI-R upon entry to the program. We conducted binary logistic regression of the total LSI-R and subcomponent scores to predict termination from the program. Results: Our findings suggest that high criminogenic risk/need is associated with failure to complete a mental health court. Further, certain dynamic risk factors, including problems within the education/employment domain and trouble with companions, are predictive of termination. Conclusions: Mental health court program coordinators should adopt criminogenic risk assessment to identify criminogenic risk/needs and address the presence of such risk with appropriate interventions. For mental health courts to achieve their goals, they must address both clinical and criminogenic needs of participants.

Authors

• Natalie Bonfine, Northeast Ohio Medical University

• Mark R Munetz, Northeast Ohio Medical University

• Christian Ritter, Northeast Ohio Medical University