Randomized trial of a diversion program for property offenders with drug use

Purpose: This paper reports findings from a randomized controlled trial of a front-end diversion program for prison-bound individuals with property crime convictions, concurrent substance use problems, and no prior violent crime convictions. Methods: Two counties in Oregon participated in the trial, labeled "County A " and "County B. " Across counties, 272 individuals (mean age = 32.7 years; 67.6% male) were recruited and randomized to receive either the diversion program (Senate Bill 416 [SB416]) or probation as usual (PAU). The primary outcome was recidivism, defined as any arrest, conviction, or incarceration for a new crime within three years of diversion from prison. Results: In County A, SB416 did not outperform PAU on any recidivism outcome. However, in County B, SB416 yielded significantly greater improvements across various configurations of the arrest, conviction, and incar-ceration outcomes, relative to PAU. Conclusions: SB416 can yield reduced recidivism when implemented in a setting like County B, which when compared to County A, had fewer justice system resources and a limited history of cross-system collaboration. More research on SB416 is needed, including an examination of its mechanisms of change and its cost-effectiveness relative to standard criminal justice system processing.