PROBATION STUDY PROVES
CERTIFIED BATTERER INTERVENTION PROGRAMS ARE
THE KEY TO STEMMING FUTURE VIOLENCE
Certified Batterer Intervention Programs
significantly reduced violent and other criminal behavior
among offenders who were placed on probation after
violating restraining orders, according to a first-time,
long-term study conducted by the state Office
of the Commissioner of Probation.
The study, "Restraining Order
Violators, Corrective Programming and Recidivism," disputes
previous research which indicates that batterers
programs have only a short-term effect.
"Offenders who complete a Certified Batterer
Intervention Program in Massachusetts are significantly
less likely to be charged with new crimes when compared
to offenders who do not complete the program,"said
Stephen Bocko, Deputy Commissioner of Probation and
Director of the Research Department. Bocko added, "Measured
over a six-year period, the rate of restraining order
violations more than doubled for those offenders who
did not complete a Batterers Intervention Program."
"Restraining Order Violators,
Corrective Programming and Recidivism," tracked
a random sample of 2,045 defendants from 1998 to
2004 and found:
- Sixty-two
percent of offenders successfully completed
certified batterer intervention when actively
supervised by a probation officer compared to
30 percent of offenders who were not under probation
supervision.
- Forty-three
percent of the defendants had a history
of multiple civil restraining orders taken out
by two or more unrelated plaintiffs.
- More
than 50 percent of the defendants fit
the following profile: violence prone, poorly
educated, under-employed, indigent, and with
serious substance abuse issues.
"Probation officers and the courts should
take strong measures to change the behavior of probationers
who fail to complete their court-ordered programs.
The findings dramatically underscore the importance
of completing these certified programs," Bocko said.
For a copy of the report, contact Coria
A. Holland at 617-727-5300 ext. 258
