Evaluating Three Years of Diversionary Programs

• In Event: Community Programs for and Supervision of Reentering Individuals

Abstract

Three years of diversionary programs have been completed`by the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office. These include Alternative Sentencing Program (ASP), Re-entry, Transitional Work Program (TWP), and Rehabilitation (Rehab). Of those who have completed the programs, 50% of offenders in ASP were rearrested, 46% of those in Re-entry were rearrested, 59% of offenders in Rehab were rearrested, and 60% of TWP offenders were rearrested. A discussion of this data as well as how these data are affected by the definition of rearrests. Simply being rearrested does not necessarily constitute recidivism.

Authors

• Holly Howat, Lafayette Parish Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee

• Raymond W. Biggar, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

• Craig Joseph Forsyth, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

• Stephen Laborde, University of Louisiana at Lafayette