04/06/2021
By Karen Mullins

School of Criminology and Justice Studies is proud to announce a Ph.D. Dissertation Defense by Leon Sawh entitled "Assessing the implementation challenges and outcomes associated with treating mentally ill probationers in the community: A case study of Chicago’s Cook County Adult Probation Department."

Date: Tuesday, April 20, 2021
Time: 3-4:30 p.m.
Location: Via Zoom (Meeting ID: 985 9567 9772)

Committee:

  • April Pattavina, Ph.D., Professor, Chair of Committee
  • William Fisher, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus
  • Wilson Palacios, Ph.D., Associate Professor
  • Matthew Epperson, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Chicago

Abstract
Probation comprises the largest segment of the criminal justice system in the United States. A significant number of people under community supervision suffer from serious mental illnesses (SMI) and research indicates that supervision outcomes for these individuals are worse than those without a mental illness diagnosis. Within the context of probation programming, work on justice involved persons with mental illness has resulted in the use of two prevailing court-based models: 1. Mental Health Court Dockets and 2. Specialized Mental Health Probation Caseloads. However, existing research on the effectiveness of Mental Health Courts on reducing future criminal justice involvement post-program completion is mixed and given the heterogeneity in operating procedures of probation departments across the country, even less is known about the range of operating procedures of Specialized Mental Health Probation Caseloads.

Experts in the field have called for more careful and thorough evaluations of both types of these mental health probation programs. This study uses existing quantitative and qualitative data to examine these different approaches to supervising adult probationers with SMI in Cook County, Illinois, which has one of the largest probation departments in the country. Administrative data from individuals with SMI (N=864) who exited Specialized Mental Health Probation Unit (n=700), Felony Mental Health Court (n=78), or Standard Probation (n=86) in 2008 or 2009, were analyzed to better understand those factors associated with successful program completion and time to re-arrest through December 2014.

Propensity score matching was used to reduce confounding due to non-randomization of probation program assignment among individuals with SMI. Results suggest that assignment to mental health courts or specialized mental health probation, may not significantly result in improved program outcomes compared to those assigned to standard probation supervision. Additionally, survival analysis results did not indicate any significant reductions in time to recidivism among those who successfully completed their assigned probation program. Analysis of individual qualitative interviews (N=26) resulted in the identification of myriad challenges experienced by officers who supervise clients with SMI. Thematic analysis of qualitative interview transcripts resulted in the identification of three major themes: 1. Programmatic and Systemic Challenges; 2. Officer Style & Approach; and 3. Insights & Perspectives.

Current efforts to reimagine and transform the criminal justice system have focused on policing, prosecution, and the reduced use of incarceration. However, these conversations should also include changes to the probation system. Findings from this study have potential implications for future development of mental health probation programming and results from this study suggest that several factors should be considered by policymakers when implementing mental health programming initiatives. These factors include, but are not limited to, staff level of effort, officer’ experience and training needs, client needs, local treatment program availability, caseload sizes, as well as the program’s ability to sustain positive impacts on key criminal justice outcomes including successful program completion, reduced recidivism, and decreased expenditures. Local jurisdictions could also explore the possibility of co-locating treatment programming, counseling services, and other commonly needed supports directly within the probation setting given the large volume of probation clients with mental health treatment needs.