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Results for drug abuse treatment (new york state)

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Author: Correctional Association of New York

Title: Treatment Behind Bars: Substance Abuse Treatment in New York Prisons

Summary: Substance abuse is a daunting problem for the majority of prison inmates nationally and more than three-quarters of those in New York State. The devastation that often accompanies substance abuse places notoriously heavy demands on the criminal justice, correctional and substance abuse treatment systems, as well as on inmates, their families and their communities. The prison system has the unique potential to provide effective drug treatment to this captive population, addressing not only the individual needs of inmates but public health and public safety as well. Not only is the prison system in a unique position to provide drug treatment, but a substantial body of research documents that treatment is, on the whole, more effective than incarceration alone in reducing drug abuse and criminal behavior among substance abusers and in increasing the likelihood that they will remain drug- and crime-free. The need to provide more comprehensive substance abuse treatment services in New York State prisons, similar to the increasing need to provide mental health services in prisons as a result of deinstitutionalization of mental hospital patients, has directly been impacted by the Rockefeller drug laws. With their rigid requirements of mandatory minimum sentencing, the Rockefeller drug laws of 1973 radically restricted judicial discretion in utilizing alternatives to incarceration as a response to drug offenses. The result: 11% of the total prison population in 1980 were individuals incarcerated for drug-related offenses; as of January, 2008, that figure was 33%. Though this past year brought significant reform to the Rockefeller Drug Laws, several mandatory minimum sentences are still on the books and a large number of individuals remain ineligible for alternative to incarceration programs. The considerable increase in this population illustrates one of the many factors that make provision of prison-based substance abuse treatment paramount, as the majority of incarcerated individuals will participate in treatment due to the nature of their offense. As of April 2010, the New York State Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) operated 68 facilities, with 57,650 inmates under custody. Eighty-three percent of inmates were designated by DOCS as “in need of substance abuse treatment.” To address their needs, DOCS operates 119 substance abuse treatment programs in 60 of its facilities. As of April l, 2009, two of those programs were licensed as treatment programs by the State’s Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS); the remainder are operated solely under the aegis and oversight of DOCS. The 2009 reforms to the Rockefeller drug laws call for change, however, requiring OASAS to guide, monitor and report on DOCS substance abuse treatment programs. In 2007, the Correctional Association launched a project to evaluate the needs of inmates with substance abuse problems and the State’s response to their needs. The information presented in this report is a result of this effort and presents our findings and recommendations based on visits to 23 facilities, interviews with experts, prison officials and correction officers, more than 2,300 inmate surveys and systemwide data provided by the Department of Correctional Services.

Details: New York: Correctional Association of New York, 2011. 325p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 23, 2011 at: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/publications/download/pvp/issue_reports/satp_report_and_appendix_february_2011.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: United States

URL: http://www.correctionalassociation.org/publications/download/pvp/issue_reports/satp_report_and_appendix_february_2011.pdf

Shelf Number: 121107

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Crime
Drug Abuse Policy
Drug Abuse Treatment (New York State)
Drug Offenders
Inmates
Prisoners
Substance Abuse Treatment