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Each year many offenders are released homeless putting them at great risk of being returned to prison. To reduce the likelihood of recidivism, Washington State implemented the Reentry Housing Pilot Program (RHPP) to provide housing assistance for high risk/high need offenders leaving prison without a viable place to live. This study provides a longitudinal (2008-2011), multisite outcome evaluation that considers how ex-offenders in the RHPP program (n = 208), who were provided housing and wraparound services, compared with similar offenders released with an elevated risk of homelessness while being traditionally supervised (n = 208). Findings show that the RHPP program was successful in significantly reducing new convictions and readmission to prison for new crimes, but had no significant effect on revocations. In addition, results showed that periods of homelessness significantly elevated the risk of recidivism for new convictions, revocations, and readmission to prison. The authors recommend that subsidized housing for high risk offenders become a central part of coordinated responses to reentry.

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The literature supporting the efficacy of drug courts continues to grow. Much attention and research has focused on recidivism rates for participants, and generally address the question of, do drug courts work? The current state of drug court practice is a process that relies heavily on the drug and alcohol treatment services that are offered to clients. Many treatment programs, and the treatment philosophy that underlies their approach to solving substance abuse, offer vague and eclectic approaches that oftentimes do not meet the diverse needs of their clients related to gender, culture, and specific cognitive impacts on the brain caused by drug use. We argue that a move toward the use of evidence-based practice, coupled with quality assurance measures for treatment providers, will promote best practice and will ensure program integrity that leads to effective and long-lasting drug court programs.