Web resource:	http://www.courtinnovation.org/_uploads/documents/battererprogramseffectiveness.pdf
Type:	Electronic publication
Title:	Testing the effectiveness of batterer programs and judicial monitoring : results from a randomized trial at the Bronx misdemeanor domestic violence court
Authors:	Labriola, Melissa Davis, Robert C Rempel, Michael
Keywords:	Perpetrators;Legal issues;Criminal justice responses
Year:	2005
Publisher:	Center for Court Innovation
Notes:	General Overview: This report outlines the findings of a US study into the effectiveness of batterer programs, when combined with judicial monitoring or supervision. Contrary to their expectations, the authors found that neither batterer programs nor judicial monitoring led to a reduction in recidivism. Methods: The study involved a randomised trial with 420 offenders, all of whom had been convicted of a domestic violence misdemeanour and sentenced to a conditional discharge. Offenders selected for the trial were assigned to four different streams: batterer program plus monthly judicial monitoring; batterer program plus ‘graduated’ monitoring (where the frequency of court appearances changes according to the offender’s level of compliance); monthly monitoring only; and graduated monitoring only. The researchers compared the outcomes of the participants in the trial against each other, and against the outcomes of another group of offenders who had been sentenced to a conditional discharge involving neither a batterer program nor monitoring. In addition to tracking the outcomes for the offenders who participated in the study, the researchers conducted 106 interviews with victims, contacted one year after sentencing. Results: The study found that neither the batterer programs nor judicial monitoring led to a reduction in the likelihood of re-arrest, although judicial monitoring resulted in a small reduction in the total number of domestic violence re-arrests. Similarly, the form of judicial monitoring did not appear to impact on the likelihood of re-arrest. Victims’ reports of re-abuse mirrored the re-arrest data. The study found that participation in a batterer program or judicial monitoring did not impact on victims’ reports of re-abuse. However, one beneficial outcome was that victims whose partners were assigned to a batterer program reported greater satisfaction with the sentence than those who did not. Conclusion: The study raises questions as to the effectiveness of batterer programs, which the authors note have become a standard court response to domestic violence. The authors are more qualified in their conclusions regarding the effectiveness of judicial monitoring, noting that a more rigorous form of supervision than that used at the Bronx site may have produced different outcomes. In light of their findings, the authors recommend experimentation with more rigorous judicial monitoring, greater emphasis on accountability rather than rehabilitation in batterer programs, and a renewed focus on victim services.
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/21222
Physical description:	127 p.
Appears in Collections:	Online resource

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