Predictors of Drug Treatment Completion Among Parole Violators‪.‬

The population of individuals in jails and prisons has grown four-fold over the past two decades in the United States, reaching 2.2 million inmates by midyear 2006 (Sabol, Minton, & Harrison 2007). Despite increases in capacity over the same period, local jails operated at an average capacity of 94%, with many exceeding 100% capacity on peak days. The proportion of prisoners under state and federal jurisdiction that were housed in private facilities reached 7.2% (111,975). Much of the increase has been attributed to drug-related crimes and drug-related disorders among the incarcerated (Belenko & Peugh 2005, 1998; Blumstein & Beck 1999). In 2004, the annual Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities began using measures of substance abuse for the first time (Mumola & Karberg 2006) and reported that 53% of state and 45% of federal prisoners met the DSM-IV criteria for drug dependence or abuse. Furthermore, based on data from the Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring (ADAM) program, approximately 60% of individuals arrested tested positive for illicit drug use (ADAM 2000). This link between drug involvement and crime has prompted the criminal justice systems to develop alternatives to incarceration in an attempt to address the treatment needs of drug-dependent offenders, and thus promote rehabilitation; to reduce prison overcrowding; and to maximize the cost benefit of public funding. Specialized programs that divert offenders who use drugs to treatment in lieu of incarceration have been found to be effective (Butzin, Martin & Inciardi 2005; Anglin, Longshore & Turner 1999; McLellan et al. 1996). Studies have demonstrated that drug courts are an effective approach for improving offender outcomes such as: reduced drug use, increased drug abstinence, decreased participation in illegal activities, and increased employment (Belenko 2001, 1999, 1998; Finigan 1999; Peters, Haas & Murrin 1999), and reducing societal costs by lowering expenditures associated with incarceration (Farrington, Petrosino & Welsch 2001; Welsh & Farrington 2000; Griffith et al. 1999).