Webinars, Videos and Virtual Events
Online learning is an important tool to access the latest criminal justice information, promising practices and trends.Our webinars focus on innovative and data-driven programs and practices to keep you ahead of the learning curve. Click below to view upcoming events and archives of past webinars.
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Recent Webinars
Equity in Grant Administration and Strategic Planning Webinar
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The session included a brief introduction to the key components of equity, including level setting and shared language, and highlighted information gathered, lessons learned and state strategies identified during the pilot year of NCJA’s new Equity in Grant Administration and Strategic Planning Program.
In addition, Byrne JAG and VOCA administrators from Illinois, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Iowa discussed their work to incorporate equity into their practices for administering federal funding.
Here are links to some of the resources shared during the session:
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Iowa discussed program advances which are the opportunity for a funded agency to apply for, and receive, advance grant funds. Advance grant funds are provided to funded agencies or programs in advance of their first claim for reimbursement. The purpose of advance funds is to assist programs with limited operating funds to pay for essential expenses, such as payroll.
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PCCD Grant Applicants Readiness Checklist from Pennsylvania is a tool that was created to help applicants determine their readiness to successfully submit an application for funding to PCCD, or if it may make more sense to partner with an organization that is able to meet the required criteria.
Braiding Federal Grant Funds for Maximum Impact
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This webinar discussed how leveraging multiple forms of federal funding can help create programs and initiatives that are sustainable, comprehensive and collaborative. Participants learned about the importance of leveraging federal funding, specifically through a braided funding model.
During the webinar, speakers also discussed:
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The value of a collaborative funding model
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What is braided funding
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Important factors to consider when contemplating the development of a collaborative funding model with braided funding
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The steps to developing a braided funding model
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90 Minutes Can Change Everything: It’s Time to Expedite Crime-Solving with Rapid DNA
View Webinar | Download Slides | Download Transcript
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The National Criminal Justice Association (NCJA) and Thermo Fisher Scientific presented this webinar on using Rapid DNA to expedite crime-solving. In the state Byrne Justice Assistance Grant solicitation, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) identified Innovative Forensic Technologies such as Rapid DNA for Booking Stations as one of its areas of emphasis for the new solicitation. According to the solicitation:
Rapid DNA, or Rapid DNA analysis, is a term used to describe the fully automated (hands free) process of developing a DNA profile from a reference sample mouth swab in 1-2 hours without the need of a DNA laboratory and without any human intervention. The overall goal of the Rapid DNA initiative is to immediately enroll qualifying arrestees in CODIS and search unsolved crimes of special concern in near real time during the booking process....BJA encourages those states with arrestee DNA collection laws that meet the prerequisites to consider using JAG funds to implement Rapid DNA technology (or the defined prerequisites, such as Live Scan integration) in booking stations within their states.
In this webinar, expert speakers on Rapid DNA discussed:
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Current day challenges with the collection, tracking and processing of arrestee and convicted offender DNA samples
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State criteria and funding needs for Rapid DNA
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Panel discussion on best practices and key considerations for the successful implementation of Rapid DNA
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Reducing Violent Crime Through Place Network Investigations
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PNI is a citywide violence reduction strategy grounded in evidence that persistent crime patterns and violent hot spots are visible indicators of underlying crime-place networks. Crime-place networks provide the infrastructure necessary to operate illicit markets and promote violent interactions. Skilled PNI investigators, working in chronically violent micro-locations, identify these networks and associated dynamics contributing to violence. Using a holistic governance model, investigators partner with an all-city/county team to prioritize local resources and remove place-based opportunities for violence. Eradicating deeply entrenched crime-place networks produces sustained crime reductions and supports community redevelopment and long-term economic growth.
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Using Technology to Enhance Treatment and Recovery for People Involved in the Criminal Justice System
View Webinar | Download slides | Download Transcript
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This webinar, held by the National Criminal Justice Association (NCJA) and the Addiction Policy Forum (APF), included an overview of the technology options to assist people with substance use disorders during the pandemic and moving forward. APF demonstrated the Connections App, a scientifically proven relapse prevention smartphone app that supports people in recovery. APF, in partnership with the FORE Foundation, is pilot testing the use of the Connections App with 1,000 individuals involved in the criminal justice system. The app has been scientifically proven to lengthen periods of abstinence and to reduce the number of heavy use days among people in recovery. It includes engagement and eTherapy (CBT4CBT) components, as well as a “recovery help button” with access to recovery specialists. While the app has a proven track record of success in outpatient settings, this will be the first time that the app has been used specifically with the criminal justice population.
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Supporting Indigent Defense Programs During Times of Crisis
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The webinar, jointly sponsored by the National Criminal Justice Association and the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, will discuss how Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne JAG) funds and Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) can be used to support indigent defense programs in the time of COVID 19 and in the future.
Speakers:
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Marea Beeman, Director, Research Initiatives, Defender Legal Services, NLADA
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Chris Kervick, Executive Director, DE Criminal Justice Council
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Jonathan Sacks, MI State Appellate Defender Office and Criminal Defense Resource Center
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Stephen Hattori, Executive Director, GU Public Defender Service
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Cathleen L.G. Moylan, Program Coordinator IV, GU Public Defender Service
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Supervision Technology in the Age of Coronavirus: Monitoring for Today and in the Future
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As states and localities speed up the pace of unscheduled release from prisons and jails in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19, post-release supervision and referral to treatment are made more difficult by conditions of quarantine and limited face-to-face interactions. Reentry services, as well as pretrial and prearrest diversion practices are also impacted.
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In this webinar hear from practitioners about various supervision technology solutions available and how they are used by probation, parole and community-based service providers. Discussion will include what has changed due to coronavirus, and what this means for the use of these technologies in the future.
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Courtroom Technology in the Age of Coronavirus: Supporting the Criminal Justice System as it Turns Digital
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View this webinar by National Criminal Justice Association (NCJA), the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA), the Due Process Institute (DPI) and the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) focused on the problems facing courts, prosecutors, and public defenders as hearings and trials increasingly rely on digital technology in response to COVID-19.
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Hear from practitioners in the criminal justice system on potential challenges in the field as jurisdictions attempt to hold criminal and civil proceedings virtually. This webinar will also cover how recent federal funding passed by Congress can be used to assist criminal justice systems in paying for the technology and resources to hold these proceedings virtually. NCJA, NDAA, DPI, and NCSC will provide attendees with an inside look at how digital technologies are being implemented in our criminal justice system as well as an overview of how state administrating agencies can support our courts during the ongoing pandemic.
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Understanding FEMA and Coordinating Response With State and Local Emergency Managers
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View a webinar about the authorities and funding available under the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) during the coronavirus. SAAs and other grantees need to coordinate Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding Program in partnership with their state and local emergency management agencies.
The webinar included discussion about:
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The purpose and focus of a governor’s emergency declaration under the Stafford Act;
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How FEMA, the state emergency management agencies, and county emergency managers coordinate funding and response activities;
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How supplies and other resources are directed through the local, state and national emergency stockpiles;
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The emergency response funding streams under the CARES Act; and,
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How state and local law enforcement agencies work with their state and county emergency management agencies to meet their first responder needs and address immediate needs in their detention facilities.
The speakers were:
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Matt Cowles, Deputy Director of the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA), who will discuss the authorities provided by the Stafford Act and governors’ emergency declarations. NEMA is the national association of the state emergency management agencies.
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Geoff Dean, Ventura County Sheriff (Ret.), who will discuss strategic considerations for law enforcement leaders and jail administrators working with their emergency management partners during the COVID-19 response.
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Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) Primer
View webinar | Download slides | Download transcript | Download the Fact Sheet
View a primer on the Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) program including eligibility, allowable uses and how to access funding. To accompany this webinar, NCJA has created a new fact sheet to help local direct awardees and potential subrecipients to understand and access funding under the Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) Program.
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Webinar, Video, and Virtual Events Archive
Click one of the webinar topics below to view archived materials for that topic. Archives contain descriptions of webinars, recordings for select webinars, slideshows, and supplemental materials.
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Policy & Practice Webinars
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Policy & Practice Webinars
The webinars in this series address a variety of topics presented by the experts. Made in cooperation with the Bureau of Justice Assistance, these webinars discuss trends and practices at all levels of government. Webinar descriptions, slides, transcripts and other supporting materials are available below.
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State Approaches to Juvenile Justice*
View webinar | Download slides | Download transcript
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In this webinar, Dr. Elise Simonsen, Policy Analyst, National Governors Association, Center for Best Practices, Homeland and Public Safety Division discusses juvenile corrections. Dr. Simonsen provides an overview of historical approaches, the purpose of juvenile justice system, the present state of the juvenile justice system in the U.S., and state examples of community-based approaches.
*Due to technical difficulties, the slides for this webinar do not display at full screen in the webinar recording. Viewers are encouraged to download the complete slides, available in PowerPoint and PDF formats.
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Addressing Cybercrime
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In this webinar, Maggie Bruner, Program Director, Cybersecurity, Emergency Communications and Technology, Homeland Security and Public Safety Division, NGA Center for Best Practices, discusses what states can do about cyber crime. This webinar discusses what cyber crime is, as well as the costs, victims, critical infrastructure and lifeline services, challenges, personnel and training, and advice for states related to legislative and community messages, and resources, including federal resources and the Center for State Cyber Security.
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Best Practices in School Safety
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In this webinar, Dr. Elise Simonsen, Policy Analyst, National Governors Association, Center for Best Practices, Homeland and Public Safety Division showcased best practices and recent examples of effective school safety strategies from various states around the country. During the webinar, she touched on the key themes of school safety governance, prevention efforts, planning and personnel, and preparedness and response. Simonsen also provided examples of trending promising programs and approaches from states across the county addressing each of these key areas.
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Gangs and Public Safety
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Dr. Elise Simonsen, Policy Analyst, National Governors Association, Center for Best Practices, Homeland and Public Safety Division discussed state approaches to prevention, planning, preparedness and response effort. Simonsen also highlighted myths regarding gang prevalence across the country and provided examples of comprehensive statewide programs and approaches to addressing gangs and improving public safety.
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Implementing Evidence-Based Practices and Services with Fidelity
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Although crime control policy and program development processes are increasingly being informed by scientific evidence, identifying and adopting what works is only part of what’s needed to realize positive outcomes. Evidence-based programs and practices (EBPs) still have to be implemented with fidelity and integrity in order to be successful. Unfortunately, implementation is not an easy task. Implementation science, however, can help practitioners tackle implementation challenges so the promise of EBPs can be more fully realized. This webinar describes three common approaches for being evidence-based and the inherent implementation challenges associated with each. It demonstrates the importance and difficulty of sound implementation using real world examples, and describes key lessons learned from implementation science that practitioners can use across a range of settings to deliver EBPs with greater fidelity, thereby improving outcomes.
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Justice for All Reauthorization Act and Supporting Public Defense
View webinar | Download slides | Download webinar factsheet
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With the passing of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act (JFAA) of 2016, requirements associated with Byrne JAG grants have changed. The Justice Programs Office (JPO) and the National Criminal Justice Association (NCJA) held a webinar on February 20, 2018 that examined these changes and how they create an opportunity for state administering agencies (SAAs) and public defense providers to collaborate. Members of the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission, Michigan State Police, and NCJA discussed the obstacles overcome by the Michigan SAAs and defenders to achieve an effective and collaborative relationship.
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State and Local Partnerships for Criminal Justice Reform
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Many State Administering Agencies (SAAs) collaborate with local Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils (CJCCs) to address the most pressing public safety challenges facing the state. In Ohio, Lucas-Toledo and Franklin Counties are established under the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) as metropolitan county criminal justice services agencies. Both CJCCs collaborate with the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services to conduct criminal justice system and youth services planning, apply for and allocate grant funds, and deliver assistance within their service areas. The creation and sustainment of the CJCC’s enables greater input by local officials on allocation decisions and allows enhanced planning for local needs. Both CJCCs are also designated as regional planning units (RPUs) for the administration of Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) funding and also provide input regarding Byrne JAG funding in their counties.
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In Ohio, the Office of Criminal Justice Services serves as a critical partner for funding and validation of ideas and innovations for the CJCCs. During this webinar, participants learned about how the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services collaborates with local CJCCs and learn about initiatives under way in those counties to reduce over-incarceration and reduce the length of stay for people with serious mental illness in jails. Franklin County discussed its participation in the Stepping Up initiative and Toledo/Lucas County will discuss its participation in the Data Driven Justice Initiative and Safety and Justice Challenge. Participants also heard about the Northwest Ohio Regional Information System (NORIS) which was founded in 1974 to provide records automation and information sharing among jurisdictions in Lucas County.
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Strategic Planning: An Action Guide
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Effective evidence-based policy and practice is rooted in thoughtful strategic planning. While varied in scope and purpose, strong strategic planning follows specific key steps and includes certain key features. States and communities determine the public safety problem, assess necessary services, identify existing gaps in state and local programs and develop and implement action plans to address the problem. Clear-eyed data analysis informs the process from planning to implementation and evaluation.
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In this practical, hands-on webinar, participants learned about the goals for statewide strategic planning, how to get started, and how to build upon planning efforts already underway in the state, including the new requirement for including a strategic plan in the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant program. This webinar covered key tools in the planning process, such as SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) and the sequential intercept model (SIM), a tool policymakers use to identify key points for intercepting and linking individuals with behavioral health issues to programs and services that will help prevent their further penetration into the criminal justice system.
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Speaker: Deb Matteucci is Executive Director of the Montana Board of Crime Control.
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Evidence Based Policymaking: Lessons from the Field
Download slides | Pew/MacArthur Report
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Over the last decade, justice and human service agencies have been under growing pressure to demonstrate that interventions and programs are not only effective but provide a solid return on investment. With a mounting body of science that shows which interventions work; decision makers are increasingly focused on how to best integrate this knowledge into program interventions, management strategies and funding decisions. This webinar looks closely at the Evidence-based Policymaking: A Guide for Effective Government report from the Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative and highlights two examples from the field. Speakers from New Mexico and Massachusetts discuss how their states have used evidence to inform funding and practice decisions; ultimately changing how justice and human service interventions are administered across their respective states.
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Speakers: Torey Silloway, Pew-MacArthur Results First Initiative; Ashleigh Holand, Pew Charitable Trusts; Maria Griego, New Mexico Legislative Finance Committee; and Lisa Sampson, Executive Office of Public Safety and Security.
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Planning For Success: Leveraging Health Care Reform to Enhance Successful Reentry
Download slides | Maricopa County ROI
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With more than 11 million people cycling through US jails every year and an estimated 10-30 percent of corrections spending going to inmate health and behavioral healthcare, there is an obvious need to not only focus on reentry but also on improving the continuity of care for individuals returning to the community. This webinar highlights planning efforts currently underway in Louisville, Kentucky and in Maricopa County, Arizona. Speakers address how their multi-disciplinary planning efforts have used healthcare reform to bring together justice and health agencies to begin addressing the complex needs of returning offenders. In addition, speakers discuss how these planning efforts have led to the integration of health insurance enrollment, improved awareness of behavioral health needs, increased health insurance literacy and the development of an information sharing portal to help track justice and health super-utilizers.
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Speakers: Jennifer M. Hawkins, Health Care Services Integration Administrator, Office of the Deputy County Manager, Maricopa County; Brian Lee, Deputy Chief, Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office; Mark E. Bolton, Director, Louisville Metro Department of Corrections; and Tom Walton, Director, Business Development, KentuckyOne Health Partners.
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The Evidence Behind Medication Assisted Therapies and Behavioral Interventions for Opioid Addiction
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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdose was the leading cause of injury death in 2012. Additionally, 53% of these deaths were related to pharmaceuticals with the majority of these being related to opioids typically prescribed for pain. Now, with heroin overdoses deaths doubling from 2010 to 2012 and the steady rise in heroin initiation since 2007, health and justice system leaders are struggling to deal with the opioid crisis. While criminal justice efforts have focused on the supply side of opioid availability, much less public attention has been paid to treatment and demand reduction strategies. This webinar explores what the science says works in helping individuals with opioid use disorders. This webinar discusses the scope of the problem, the research behind medication assisted therapies and how behavioral interventions can enhance treatment effectiveness.
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Speakers: Michael Botticelli, Acting Director of National Drug Control Policy; Dr. Marc Fishman, Addiction Psychiatrist and Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; and Dr. Nancy Petry, Professor of Medicine and Director of Behavioral Cardiovascular Prevention and the REWARD Center at the University of Connecticut Health Center.
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The Evidence Behind Swift and Certain Sanctions in Community Supervision
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Historically, many community supervision agencies have had few meaningful intermediate sanctions for when offenders are found in violation; agencies have had the unenviable task of trying to improve offender accountability with few tools to increase compliance. In an effort to enhance offender accountability, many localities over the last decade have tested programs to improve the speed and certainty of intermediate sanctions. Thanks to these initiatives and their accompanying research, there is now a robust body of evidence supporting the fact that swift and certain sanctions can improve accountability, substance abuse abstinence and lower revocations. The Evidence Behind Swift and Certain Sanctions in Community Supervision, will explore the effects of this model and highlight one local and one statewide project that have substantially implemented the model as part of their community supervision strategies.
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Pepperdine University operates the Swift and Certain Sanctions (SAC) Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) Resource Center. SAC is an approach to community supervision (pretrial, probation, and parole) that employs swift responses to violations of the conditions of supervision, with certain but modest sanctions. The Resource Center assists interested jurisdictions with developing, implementing, and testing SAC models that are specific to their needs, capabilities, and characteristics, and which respond to lessons learned during implementation and testing. Our goals are to enable participating jurisdictions to implement SAC with fidelity or to improve their implementation of an existing program, through coaching and technical assistance; to ensure that they improve their implementation through fidelity monitoring and data analysis; and to improve the field’s understanding of SAC policies, practices, and TTA provision through testing and evaluation. Our team has a decade of experience in SAC implementation, fidelity monitoring, testing, and evaluation, with jurisdictions across the country. We are partnered with two dozen practitioner consultants, who are experienced in every aspect of SAC program development and implementation; they advise on TTA resources and provide direct assistance to implementing jurisdictions. In our provision of TTA and analysis of fidelity and outcomes data the Resource Center both informs implementation science and contributes to the knowledge base for how SAC works and for whom. Assistance is provided at no cost.
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Speakers: Angela Hawken, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Public Policy, Pepperdine University School of Public Policy; Judge Steven Alm, First Circuit Judge, Hawaii State Judiciary; and Bernie Warner, Secretary, Washington State Department of Corrections.
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Taking the First Step: Medicaid Enrollment Strategies within the Criminal Justice System
Download slides | Oregon DOC MOU
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State and local criminal justice agencies continue to grapple with the impact of Medicaid expansion and how it can be used to reduce justice system costs, enhance access to treatment and improve public safety. This webinar, Taking the First Step: Medicaid Enrollment Strategies within the Criminal Justice System, will discuss how justice agencies at the state and local level have developed different Medicaid strategies to link their populations with access to health and behavioral health coverage.
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The third in our series on implementation of the Affordable Care Act, this webinar highlights the work underway in four states and hear how multiple state and local justice system partners have sought to use federal Medicaid funds to enhance state and local system outcomes. In addition, participants will hear from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, who provided an overview on pathways to enrollment and the types of behavioral health services covered under Medicaid expansion. (View the first and second webinar in this series).
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Speakers Jenny Montoya Tansey, Health Matters Project Director, Californians for Safety and Justice; Colleen Gallagher, Director, Quality Assurance, Health& Addiction Services, Connecticut Department of Corrections and Kathleen F. Maurer, Correctional Medical Director, Connecticut Department of Corrections; Cindy Booth, Transition and Release Administrator , Oregon Department of Corrections and Shawn Cost-Streety, Reentry Benefits Coordinator, Oregon Department of Corrections; Barry Pfundt, Staff Attorney, Center for Justice, Spokane and Francis Adewale, Assistant Public Defender, Office of the Public Defender, Spokane; and Stephanie Kaminsky, Senior Technical Advisor, Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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Reframing Public Defense
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Sponsored by the National Criminal Justice Association, the Department of Justice’s Access to Justice Initiative and the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, this webinar builds off of the 2013 Strengthening Indigent Defense: Understanding State and Federal Resources webinar. The fourth in a series of webinars which seek to help the court and public defense community enhance their competitiveness for local, state and federal funding, Reframing Public Defense provides practical examples of how public defender offices have changed how they frame their work and built partnerships that enhance their effectiveness and improve justice system outcomes. In addition to a high level discussion on using a systems based perspective to reframe the work of public defenders, attendees heard how the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy and the San Francisco Public Defender's Office have leveraged their efforts to obtain new state, local, federal and foundation funding.
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Speakers: Edward C. Monahan, Public Advocate, Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy; Jeff Adachi, Public Defender, San Francisco Public Defender’s Office; Jenni Katzman, Senior Counsel, Access to Justice- Department of Justice; Nancy Gist, Interim Director, Defender Legal Services-National Legal Aid and Defender Association; and Simin Shamji, Manager, Clean Slate and Specialty/Reentry Unit - San Francisco Public Defender’s Office.
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Workforce Development within Reentry: Enhancing Public Safety through Employment
Download slides | Legislative overview | Offender packet
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With at least 95% of incarcerated inmates returning to the community and re-arrest rates in many states hovering above 50%; the importance of developing comprehensive reentry service models is critical to enhancing correctional outcomes, improving public safety and saving limited tax dollars. Workforce Development within Reentry: Enhancing Public Safety through Employment highlighted multiple strategies for building workforce development and job reediness into reentry service models. Specifically, this webinar highlighted the work of the Utah Employment Placement Project and New York City’s Center for Employment Opportunities. In addition to looking at initiatives in the field; this webinar explored a new white paper from the Council of State Government’s Justice Center which proposes a new paradigm for how workforce development is integrated into reentry efforts.
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Speakers: Hank Rosen, Policy Analyst , Council of State Governments Justice Center; Sam Schaeffer, Chief Executive Officer/Executive Director, Center for Employment; Opportunities; and Jeff Wilson, Employment Taskforce Supervisor, Utah Department of Corrections.
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PREA Compliance and Governor Certification
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NCJA, the National Governors Association, and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) hosted a webinar in March, 2014 to discuss the audit and certification process under the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA). As of May 2014, Governors are required to make their first certification of compliance or non-compliance with the national standards of PREA. This webinar explores the purposes and requirements of PREA and the national standards, the governor certification process, and recent guidance related to the national standards issued by BJA through the National PREA Resource Center. The session also answers questions from participants regarding PREA and the National Standards, compliance issues, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) grant programs impacted by PREA.
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This webinar is designed for state policymakers including: Governors’ criminal justice policy advisors and legal counsels; State Administering Agencies and their counterpart agencies which administer the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and the Office of Violence Against Women grant programs; state Attorneys General policy staff; and state correctional agencies.
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Speakers: Ruby Qazilbash, Associate Deputy Director for Justice Systems/Corrections at BJA; and Jenni Trovillion, Associate Director of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, Co-Director of the National PREA Resource Center, and former Deputy Director of the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission.
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Innovations in Substance Abuse Treatment and Abstinence Reinforcement
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In 2009 over 123 million people aged 12 or older required treatment for an illicit drug or alcohol abuse problem, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Of those needing treatment, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimates that only 11 percent received inpatient or outpatient addiction services. While the need for services have traditionally outpaced the number of open treatment slots/beds; the field is expected to expand substantially over the next decade thanks in large part to the Affordable Care Act and the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act. With millions of newly eligible Americans now having access to both health and behavioral health care services, meeting this demand will require providers to look at innovative new approaches and toward maximizing what the evidence says about effectiveness of current practices.
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Innovations in Substance Abuse Treatment and Abstinence Reinforcement examines the research and the science behind two innovations in substance abuse treatment that can improve treatment effectiveness and enhance the number of people who receive services. Specifically, this webinar looks at CBT4CBT, a computer based cognitive behavioral intervention designed for substance treatment. It also examines how contingency management, a behavioral intervention based on principles of reinforcement, can dramatically improve the ability of individuals to abstain from drug use.
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Beginning the Conversation: The Affordable Care Act, Medicaid Expansion and Your Justice Agency
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While implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will look different in every state, justice agencies across the country have an opportunity to take advantage of new resources within the health care landscape. With Medicaid eligibility expanding in 25 states and DC and Health Insurance Marketplaces online nationwide, more people than ever before will have access to health and behavioral health care services. For justice agencies, the ACA and Medicaid expansion in particular, represent an opportunity to not only lower recidivism rates and improve public safety but save state and local tax dollars. By diverting those offenders with behavioral health needs away from justice systems and toward mental health and substance abuse treatment, we can better ensure that limited justice resources are used efficiently. With 15 percent of men and 31 percent of woman in jail having a chronic mental illness and an even higher percentage with a diagnosable substance abuse disorder; the opportunities for leveraging health care to improve public safety are great.
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Beginning the Conversation: The Affordable Care Act, Medicaid Expansion and Your Justice Agency is the first in a series of webinars that highlight how the expansion of health coverage can be leveraged to enhance public safety. This initial webinar will provided attendees with a basic understanding of the new law, implications of Medicaid expansion and detailed information on how expanded coverage could impact state and local justice agencies. In addition, this webinar highlighted efforts currently underway in the corrections field to take advantage of Medicaid eligibility expansion.
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Strengthening Court Systems: Understanding State and Federal Resources
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With state budgets tight, it is increasingly important for court systems to look outside of traditional legislative appropriations for funding and resources. Without adequate funding, the administration of civil and criminal justice suffers, producing not only diminished outcomes for court involved individuals but increasing system costs for related justice partners. This webinar, Strengthening Court Systems: Understanding State and Federal Resources, highlights multiple grant opportunities available through State Administering Agencies (SAAs) and various federal partners. In addition to discussing how court administrators can engage with and stay appraised of funding opportunities; this webinar highlights some of the federally funded training and technical assistance opportunities offered to court systems. Attendees heard from court administrators about the process of applying for grant funds and showcase strategies for integrating court functions into criminal justice resource planning.
Speakers: Brooke Marshall (Executive Director, MT Board of Crime Control); Bradley D. Fowler (Planning and Organizational Development Officer, NCJ Administrative Office of the Courts); Hon. Dina E. Fein (First Justice, Springfield MA); Michael Coelho (Assistance Secretary for Policy and Planning, MA Executive Office of Public Safety and Security); Jonathan Faley (Associate Deputy Director, Bureau of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice); and Karen Lash (Senior Counsel, Access to Justice Initiative).
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From Grant Funds to State Appropriations
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While grant funding is ideally suited to seed promising initiatives, it can be very difficult to get initiatives funded at the city, county or state level. From Grant Funds to State Appropriations highlights two statewide initiatives, the Illinois Redeploy initiative and Oregon’s network of Drug and Problem Solving Courts, that successfully used grant funds to seed, expand and evaluate programs that have now transitioned to state funding. In addition to highlighting the success of these initiatives this webinar looks at how initiatives were transitioned, how state grant making agencies can support promising and proven initiatives, as well as some of the challenges these initiatives experience when transitioning to state and local appropriations. Representatives from the Oregon and Illinois State Administrating Agencies (SAAs) also shared some of the ways that state grant making agencies can support efforts of sub-grantees to find sustainable state or local funding.
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Speakers: Circuit Court Judge Dennis J. Graves, Salem, Oregon and Mary Ann Dyar, program administrator for Illinois Adult Redeploy.
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Expanding Treatment: How the Affordable Care Act Can Impact Criminal Justice Systems
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On March 23, 2010 President Barack Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), more commonly known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Since this time there has been great speculation on how implementation would impact not only the many uninsured; but how access to health care services would impact our criminal justice system. With an estimated 14 percent of men and 31 percent of women in jail and state prison suffering from chronic and persistent mental illness and an even higher percentage with a diagnosable substance abuse disorder; the scope of the problem and intersection between criminal justice and behavioral health systems is well understood. Despite this, individual offenders and criminal justice systems have never had the treatment resources available to access intensive in/outpatient treatment, treatment alternatives to incarceration or the medically tailored reentry services needed to improve personal and public safety outcomes. Expanding Treatment: How the Affordable Care Act Can Impact Criminal Justice Systems will examine how the expansion of Medicaid and creation of insurance exchanges may impact state and local criminal justice systems. Presenters will also describe state and local planning efforts currently underway in Illinois to leverage these new resources to reduce recidivism and build public safety.
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Speakers: Maureen McDonnell, Director of Business and Health Care Strategy Development for Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities (TASC) and Jack Cutrone, Executive Director of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA).
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Expanding Stakeholder Involvement: Promoting Inclusive System Planning
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As criminal justice agencies seek to promote change, address public safety concerns or plan for resource allocation, they often look to established commissions, boards and councils. These planning bodies can be very helpful for promoting strategic planning, coordinating efforts and addressing issues that affect multiple systems or agencies. Despite the potential for comprehensive and inclusive system planning to decrease crime, strengthen neighborhoods, and achieve cost savings, not all system partners that work with offenders on the front and back ends of our justice system have been consistently included in state and local system planning efforts. Whether one is talking about behavioral health systems, public health agencies, social service providers, public defenders, community corrections agencies or employment service programs; there are often numerous non-traditional partners with overlapping client populations, interests and missions. Recognizing the value of inclusive system planning, the Department of Justice’s Edward Byrne JAG solicitation encourages inclusive system planning and in 2012 for the first time required applicants to submit a program narrative that not only describes the strategic planning process, but also identifies the stakeholders currently participating in the process.
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This webinar explores how different levels of government have looked to improve their justice systems by engaging with non-traditional system partners. Presenters will discuss how their organizations have looked to expand the number of involved stakeholders, the benefits that can come with inclusive system planning and address some of the challenges that can arise with expanded representation on planning and advisory bodies.
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Speakers: Edison R. Aponte, associate deputy director, Bureau of Justice Assistance; Melanca Clark, Senior Counsel, Access to Justice Initiative, Jeanne M. Smith, director, CO Division of Criminal Justice and Dr. Lee Ayers, OR Criminal Justice Commission and the Jackson County Public Safety Coordinating Council.
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Implementation Science and the Importance of Fidelity: Replicating Evidence-Based Practices
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Over the last 15 years criminal justice decision makers, state legislatures and the federal government have increasingly pushed for the adoption of researched based, data-driven or evidence-based programming. This focus has been accompanied by the development of menus of promising and evidence-based programming, including but not limited to; CrimeSolutions.gov, the National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices, and Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development. While improving access to evidence-based strategies is vital, it is also imperative to understand the importance of fidelity and other factors when seeking to replicate a program or practice. Poor implementation of a program model can not only diminish the desired outcomes, but if done poorly can tarnish the reputation of a given program or treatment modality. Implementation Science and the Importance of Fidelity will focus on what science tells us about effective implementation of evidence-based programs and practices and how this can impact desired outcomes. As an applied example, this webinar will describe data and lessons learned from a 15-year project of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency to scale-up a menu of evidence-based programs and treatment modalities.
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Speakers: Brian Bumbarger, founding director of the Evidence-based Prevention and Intervention Support Center at Penn State University; and Roger Przybylski, founder of the RKC Group.
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Addressing the Intersection Between Behavioral Health and the Criminal Justice System
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It is often been noted that the largest mental health facilities in this country are local jails and state prisons. The Council of State Government estimated that 14 percent of men and 31 percent of woman in jail and state prison suffered from chronic and persistent mental illness in 2007. Addressing the Intersection Between Behavioral Health and the Criminal Justice System looks at two state-level strategies aimed at preventing those with chronic mental illness from either entering or returning to state and local justice systems. This webinar highlighted the training and technical assistance provided to counties by the Pennsylvania Mental Health and Justice Center of Excellence and Oklahoma’s Collaborative Mental Health Reentry Program.
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Speakers: Dr. Patty Griffin, senior consultant, Mental Health and Justice Center of Excellence, Bob Mann, administrator of mental health operations, Oklahoma Department of Corrections, and Donna Bond, manager of correctional, criminal justice and reentry services, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.
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Strengthening Indigent Defense: Understanding State and Federal Resources
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During this, the 50th anniversary of Gideon v. Wainright, the landmark case that secured the right to counsel in criminal proceedings, the Justice Department is placing renewed emphasis on helping states meet their constitutional obligation to provide effective representation to indigent defendants. This webinar showcased the Justice Department’s efforts to encourage jurisdictions to bring all system stakeholders together and will highlight some of the state and federal resources available to the public defense community. This webinar focused on funding opportunities available through the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant program, federal support for public defense initiatives, current opportunities for training and technical assistance and highlight the work of DOJ’s Access to Justice Initiative. In addition, attendees heard from state public defenders about the process of applying for grant funds and showcase strategies for integrating the indigent defense function into criminal justice resource planning.
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Speakers: Melanca Clark, senior counsel with the Department of Justice’s Access to Justice Initiative; Edward C. Monahan, director, Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy; Jeanie Vela, office manager, Denver Office of the Colorado State Public Defender; and Jack Cutrone, executive director for the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.
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Veteran-Specific Reentry
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Veterans Specific Reentry looked at both state and local efforts to help veterans re-enter society, prevent recidivism, address risk factors and connect to benefits earned through service. This webinar focused on efforts taking place within the Indiana Department of Correction’s Veterans Education and Transition Program and county level efforts taking place in Washington State.
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Speakers: Sarah Neidlinger, veteran’s specialist for U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Alexis Dean, reentry specialist with the Indiana Department of Corrections and David Green, project manager with the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs.
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John Schools and Demand Reduction
John Schools and Demand Reduction will focus on and explore the evidence base, prevalence and successes of John School programs and other demand reduction techniques being used throughout the nation. In addition to providing a national perspective, the webinar will highlight a successful John School in Waco, Texas. This webinar is the second in a two part series related to human trafficking and law enforcement efforts to reduce victimization. (View the first webinar in this series: Human Trafficking: The Stats, Trends, and Law Enforcement Response). Dr. Michael Shively is one of the pioneers in researching John Schools and other demand reduction techniques and has been the lead researcher on a number of National Institute of Justice funded studies. Anita Johnson runs Texas’s first John School which is considered one of the best national examples of law enforcement being actively involved in the establishment of a John School.
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Human Trafficking: Stats, Trends, and Law Enforcement Response
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Human Trafficking: The Stats, The Trends and The Law Enforcement Response focused on the prevalence and severity of human trafficking. Presenters for this webinar discussed the trends being seen by experts in the 42 federally funded Anti-Human Trafficking Task Forces and provided both a national and local perspective on how the human trafficking epidemic is affecting law enforcement and communities around the nation. The two presenters for this webinar are Dr. Jack McDevitt, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies at the College of Criminal Justice at Northeastern University and Lt. Derek Marsh of the Westminster California Police Department and the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF) focused on the prevalence and severity of human trafficking. Presenters for this webinar discussed the trends being seen by experts in the 42 federally funded Anti-Human Trafficking Task Forces and provided both a national and local perspective on how the human trafficking epidemic is affecting law enforcement and communities around the nation.
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Speakers: Dr. Jack McDevitt, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies at the College of Criminal Justice at Northeastern University and Lt. Derek Marsh of the Westminster California Police Department and the OCHTTF.
DISCLAIMER: This webinar series is supported by funding from the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the SMART Office, and the Office for Victims of Crime. Points of view or opinions are those of the speakers.
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