Returning Home Illinois Policy Brief: Treatment Matching

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Returning Home Illinois
Policy Brief
URBAN INSTITUTE
Justice Policy Center
2100 M Street NW
Washington, DC 20037
http://justice.urban.org
Treatment Matching
By Laura Winterfield and
Jennifer Castro
Prepared for the Illinois Criminal Justice
Information Authority
August 2005
Returning Home: Understanding the
Challenges of Prisoner Reentry is a
longitudinal study of prisoner reentry in
Maryland, Illinois, Ohio, and Texas. The
study explores prisoner reentry across five
domains: (1) the individual experience, as
documented through interviews with
prisoners before and after release from
prison; (2) the family experience, as
documented through interviews with family
members of returning prisoners; (3) the
peer group experience, as documented
through prisoner interviews both before
and after their release; (4) the community
experience, as documented through
interviews with key community
stakeholders and focus groups with
residents; and (5) the broader policy
environment at the state level.
In Illinois, the John D. and Catherine T.
MacArthur Foundation, the Rockefeller
Foundation, the Woods Fund of Chicago,
the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and the
Illinois Criminal Justice Information
Authority supported Returning Home. The
Metro Chicago Information Center (MCIC)
conducted the original data collection
under the expert direction of Dr. Alisú
Schoua-Glusberg.
This report was supported by Grant 02-DB-BX-
0017 awarded by the Bureau of Justice
Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, U.S.
Department of Justice, through the Illinois
Criminal Justice Information Authority. Points of
view or opinions contained within this document
are those of the author and do not necessarily
represent the official position or policies of the
U.S. Department of Justice, or the Illinois
Criminal Justice Information Authority.
As has been well documented, large and growing numbers
of persons entering prison have a substance abuse problem.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 1997, 83
percent of state prisoners reported ever using drugs, up from
79 percent in 1991 (Mumola 1999). Additionally, in 1997, 57
percent had used drugs in the month before their current
offense, up from 50 percent in 1991. These findings are
mirrored in survey results from the National Center on
Addiction and Substance Abuse, where over three-quarters of
federal, state, and local jail inmates reported one or more of
the following: use of an illegal drug on a regular basis; at least
one drug-related conviction or alcohol-related driving violation;
being under the influence of drugs or alcohol when they
committed their most recent offense; or commission of their
offense to get money for drugs (Belenko and Peugh 1999, 2).
Addressing substance use and addiction is viewed as an
essential component of successful reentry, increasing the
likelihood that former prisoners will find and keep jobs, secure
housing, and forge positive intimate and familial relationships
after their release. In addition, research has shown that in-prison
drug treatment, when linked with postrelease continuity
of treatment, can reduce postrelease drug use and enhance
positive outcomes (Gaes et al. 1999; Knight et al. 1999; Martin
et al. 1995; Harrison 2000).
Nonetheless, over the last decade, programming of all kinds—
both within and outside of prison—has declined (Lynch and
Sabol 2001). With regard to drug treatment in particular, fewer
than one in four (24 percent) prison inmates nationwide
reported receiving any drug treatment since their time of
admission (Belenko and Peugh 2005). Petersilia (2005), based
on a somewhat different analysis of the same data, reported
that well under half (40 percent) of those with a severe drug
problem receive appropriate services.